A Rose's Thorns
by Phoenix Bradley
Summary: She was a liar, a theif, and one of his closest friends. It wasn't until she was taken away from him that he realized he wanted nothing to do with her messed up life anymore. COMPLETE!
1. The Basement

A Rose's Thorns  
by, Smeagol's girl

(A/N: I can finally get some work done around here! Oy! Okay, when they were kids, Willy Wonka and Rose Parker were on and off friends, but she was the only friend he can remember because she was the only one who broke his heart the worst. It's been years since then, and the pain is almost gone, and everything's going great with his heir. But then when a phone call arrives at the factory, Willy's past is about to come back to haunt him. Rated T. I own nothing.)

"I feel like there is no need for converstation/ Some questions are better left without a reason/ And I would rather reveal myself than my situation/ Now and then I consider my hesitation/ The more the light shines through me/ I pretend to close my eyes/ The more the dark consumes me/ I pretend I'm burning bright/ I wonder if the things I did were just to be different/ To spare myself of the constant shame of my existence/ And I would surely redeem myself in my desperation/ Here and now I'll express my situation/ The more the light shines through me/ I pretend to close my eyes/ The more the dark consumes me/ I pretend I'm burning bright/ There's nothing ever wrong/ But nothing's ever right/ Such a cruel contradiction/ And I know I cross the line/ It's not easy to define/ I'm born to indecision/ There's always something new/ Some path I'm s'posed to choose/ With no particular rhyme or reason/ The more the light shines through me/ I pretend to close my eyes/ The more the dark consumes me/ I pretend I'm burning bright/ I feel like there is no need for conversation"  
-'Burning Bright,' Shinedown

(Back in the day...)

"I don't want to do this," whispered young Willy, looking over at his friend with nervous eyes. It was ten at night, dark out, and well past his bedtime. If his father knew he were here, he might as well not even go home. Beside him, the young girl shifted, a hint of fear radiating off of her, but she made up for it with a false smile.

"You chickening out now, Will?" she asked in a mocking tone. "Then go back home to Daddy and have him tuck you in." Willy sent her a dirty look, and followed her to the next bush quietly. The crickets and the occasional passing car were the only sounds they could hear, and she finally turned to him. "Okay, you knock on the door and keep her busy while I go in through the window."

"What do I do?" he asked.

"I don't know. Think of something. Ask if you can borrow an egg or something. Just keep her busy, got it?"

"I don't want to," he whined.

"Too late. Now go before I kick you there." He rolled his eyes, and walked away from her, heading to the door like he was supposed to. About a week back, he had been playing soccer with her and their ball had managed to go over the fence and into the yard of this particular house. The owner was a grouchy old lady that all the children despised and avoided as much as possible. Any balls that landed in her yard were immediately stored in the garage or basement where they were never seen again. Rose had taken great pains to find out which place the ball was stored in, and to their luck, the basement had been the designated place of choice.

On more than one occasion, Willy had begged her to just ask for the ball back, and yet there he was, approaching the old lady's door to ask for an egg he wasn't going to use. This had better be worth it, was all he could think as he reached over to the brass knocker. It took a few minutes, standing there in silent agony, waiting for the bloody door to open, but then the porch light turned on and the front door creaked on its hinges, opening to him.

The old lady had been enough of a horrifying sight on her own, but when she wore her light blue bed bonnet and nightdress she was downright terrifying. He gulped over the lump in his throat, and stuttered terribly. Before he had even said a word, he knew she wouldn't fall for it.

"What do you want, you little brat? Can't a woman get any sleep around here!" she croaked.

"Uh... I... I w-was wond-d-d-dering... ma'am," he stuttered, then stopped to take a deep breath and speak. Behind the house, Rose was busy pushing up the window that lead into the living room, so she could climb inside. She could hear Willy stuttering like a cowardly idiot, but ignored it, knowing the delay would help her a lot, assuming the old lady believed him of course.

"Eggs?" she heard the old lady snap. "What the bloody hell are you asking for eggs for at this time of night? Miserable little brat!" Rose rolled her eyes, and slipped in, landing comfortably on the couch. Then she sneaked down the hall, and to the basement door, opening it and running down the stairs as fast as she could. What she found was a truck load of balls, all of them locked in a cage like they were prisoners. The sight was so bizarre, but she ran up to it, pulling out a bobby pin to pick the lock.

"I'll get on from the fridge then, and stop your crying!" croaked the old lady. Rose breathed in sharply when she heard the voice, and waited until she could hear the old bat coming into the kitchen, before she finally slid the open lock out of the hole. The cage door creaked a little as she opened it, but not loud enough for anyone else to hear, and she snatched her ball from the pile, closing the door and locking it again as quickly and quietly as possible.

Willy shifted nervously on his feet. C'mon, Rose. Where are you? he wondered. Soon he heard the footsteps of the old woman coming back, and she handed him the egg. "There," she said grouchily. "Now get out of here!"

"Y-yes ma'am!" he squeaked and practically fled from there. It wasn't until the door shut behind him that he realized Rose was still in there. Panic filled him, and he wondered what he was supposed to do. Should he just wait? Or had she already gotten out of there? Perhaps she had already run out of there and was safe at home right now? No, she wouldn't do that. She would never leave him stranded... would she?

There came a tapping noise from the side of the house, and he turned, staring curiously. He heard it again and slipped over there, spotting a window well on the side of the house, leading into the basement. Running as fast as he could, he kneeled over the edge and looked in. Rose was standing behind the window, pulling it open, and then held up the ball. He couldn't reach it so she tossed it to him. Then she climbed up through the window and stood there, reaching her hands up. He took them and helped pull her out, then they fled down the street, not stopping until they were in front of his house.

"That was too close," he said, catching his breath. She smiled triumphantly, and bounced the ball off the asphalt.

"I can't believe you cried," she said after a minute and he turned red.

"Did not!"

"Please, I could hear you from the kitchen. Crybaby." Willy gave her an even dirtier look and stomped over to his house, but she ran up to him, catching him by the shoulder. "Will," she said softly, and he stopped for reasons beyond him. Whenever she made him angry enough he would swear never to listen to her again, but then all she would have to do is ask and he would do it, no matter how much he hated it.

He stopped and turned to look at her, and she smiled at him. "I couldn't have done it without you, so thanks," she said softly, and kissed his cheek before running off. His cheeks turned more red, and he quietly snuck back into his house.  
----

(Years later...)

Willy stirred in his sleep and opened his eyes, looking around his dark room warily. Everything was quiet and calm, nothing unusual or scary in sight. He stood up, unable to stop his mind from racing around his dreams, and walked over to the glass door in his room which led to a small porch that looked out on the town.

It had been so long since he had last dreamed about Rose, and the dreams were always memories of their many 'adventures'. The incident with the ball was one of the very few where he wasn't caught and grounded for weeks. "She's a bad seed," his father had told him so many times. "Stay away from her. She'll only get you into trouble." And she had, many many times. Sometimes, he wondered why he had ever been friends with her, and even now he regretted it. She had been nothing but trouble, even up to the end when he watched her get taken away by a police car.

Shame came over him when he realized there were tears in his eyes, and he brushed them away before they were even big enough to fall. It had been a long time ago, and he had moved on. She had gotten what was coming, harsh as it was, and knowing he would more than likely never see her again gave him a small comfort. But when he had dreams like that, it only meant one thing. She was near again.

It took him a while before he could finally go to bed again, but in time he forgot about her and fell into a pleasantly pointless dream.  
----

(A/N: I know I haven't posted anything in months, but it's been hard to think of something new to write lately. Hope this one turns out okay. R&R!)


	2. Perfectly Pointless

When Willy and Charlie showed up to the dinner table soaking wet, Mrs. Bucket nearly went into a coniption. Though it was never official or legal, she had practically taken to him like a mother to a son, and Willy and Charlie might as well have been brothers. 

"What on earth happened to you two!" She demanded, her hands on her hips. They both looked at each other, ready to throw on the whole, 'He did it' act, but decided it wouldn't work... again.

"Well..." started Willy. "We're working on a new candy, and tested it for the first time today but..." his voice trailed off and Charlie picked up for him.

"It's still too strong," he said, shrugging as beads of water dripped off his face. "Last time we had too many color explosions."

"Then the aroma explosion," said Willy.

"And now a water explosion." Mrs. Bucket raised an eyebrow.

"And... what exactly is the point of this... candy?" The two looked at each other, seeming confused, then back to her.

"We haven't gotten that far yet," said Charlie.

"You're dripping all over my floor!" she fretted, and sighed, dropping one hand so she could point down the hall. "All right, both of you, get in the bathroom and dry off! You've got five minutes."

"Yes ma'am," they said simultaneously, and they ran off, shouting something about the last one there was a moldy chocolate bar. After that came a peaceful dinner, amazingly, and the chocolatier excused himself a little earlier than usual, his mind seeming to be wandering a million miles an hour. He had barely gotten into his office when the phone rang.

The phone never rang, so the sound made him jump. Then he paused. Who on earth was calling and how did they get his number? He almost never gave away his number. In fact, there was only one person in the entire world who had his number...

"Oh no," he muttered, fearing what it was, and he ran over to answer it. "Hello?" he said softly.

"Is this Mr. Wonka?" asked a male voice.

"Yes," he answered. "Who is this?"

"I'm with the hospital," said the man. "A woman named Rose Parker left your number as the only emergency contact incase there was an emergency." His heart was pounding. Oh Rose, what had you gotten yourself into now?

"Rose?" he asked. "Is she okay?"

"We're calling to inform you that Rose's mother, Betty Parker, is dying of cancer, and won't be around much longer. We've been trying to contact her to tell her that, but like we said, your number was the only number."

"Oh," he said, a small rush of relief coming over him. "Okay. Thankyou." He hung up then sat in his chair, holding his head in his hands. Though it was great news to hear that Rose was not in trouble, along with it came the fact that he had to contact her now. It wasn't impossible, of course. He knew how to reach her. He just really didn't want to. He'd spent most of his life trying to get her as far away from his life as possible, but...

He sighed. This time there were no buts. Not even she deserved to be left in the dark if her mother was dying. And though he hated it, he knew what he had to do. So half heartedly, and rather grouchily, he began the tedious task of digging around for her blasted number.  
----

(One week after the ball incedent...)

"Willy Braceface! Willy Braceface!"

The little boy stomped off ignoring the taunting, or at least trying to, and fought back the urge to shout something truly hateful to them. Fortunately the situation seemed to take care of itself when he heard, "Hey, Lard Bottom Fred! I wouldn't be talking if I were you! Last time you bent over the world thought it was a solar eclipse!"

The boys all gave calls of, "Oooh!" and spread apart from Fred Jackson and Rose Tomaselli, staring each other down and resembling an old fashion western movie during the duel scene. All they needed was a tumbleweed to roll by.

"You say something to me, runt?" asked Fred, folding his arms over his oversized torso, a dangerous look in his eyes.

"You heard me, fatty!" she replied, returning the deadly glance. Willy's eyes widened. At any moment he could squash her, launch her into orbit with a single kick, or punch her into next week, and yet she didn't seem the least bit afraid. He was, and it wasn't even him staring down Fred.

"You're gonna wish you kept your big mouth shut or I'll-"

"Touch me and I'll tell your daddy about them magazines you were sneaking out of the drugstore down the street. The 'special' ones. And your daddy's a preacher, right? I'm sure he'd love to hear all about that."

"I don't have any magazines," said Fred menacingly.

"Really? Then what was that I saw you stuffing in your bag in such a hurry? A text book? You can't even read!" Somewhere in the last two sentences either she had grown about five feet, or he had shrunk drastically. Either way, she was now litterally staring him down, and though he maintaned his tough face, he suddenly wasn't so threatening.

Rose walked away then, her damage done, and Willy followed her, having no reason to stay there. Once they were a few blocks away he spoke up to her, not being able to take the silence anymore. "How did you know about the magazines?" he asked. She smiled.

"You're gullible, Will," she muttered. "I made it up. Boys like him always have a secret stash somewhere they don't want anyone knowing about. Besides, even if I was wrong he knows his dad doesn't trust him, let alone believe a single word he says. If I told his father that his son was the one who pulled off the hit and run last week, he'd believe me." She smiled, seeming very proud of herself. "It's beautiful the way things like that work out."

Willy didn't say anything, and they ended up going to the park to hang out for a while before going home. "Are you going to see that movie tonight?" she asked as they sat on the swings. "Zombie Revenge 2?"

"My dad said I can't," he muttered. Truth be told he really didn't want to see it anyway.

"Then sneak out," she muttered.

"No," he said. "I don't want to get in trouble. And you almost got us killed last week with the old lady!"

"Please, there's no way she would have killed us. She's too old! We could have taken her. C'mon, it'll be fun."

"No," he repeated. "Sorry."

"You're a wimp, Willy."

"And you're a pain, Rose," he replied. Rose smiled, taking this as a compliment, and they talked for a few more minutes before splitting up for the afternoon.  
-  
(Back to the future)

The ringing tone droned on until finally he could hear someone pick up. "Rose," he said softly.

"Willy?" came her voice. Oh wow, she sounded older. Had it really been that long? "You'd better have a good reason for calling-"

"Rose, I've got something I need to tell you..."

(A/N: Am a little worried about the reviews, or lack there of. Please, reveiw. Even if you hate it. If you hate it, how do you expect me to get any better if you don't say anything? So please, review)  
----


	3. Never the Same

"Why can't I come?" demanded Charlie to a very irritated Willy Wonka, who was going about, putting on his large winter coat. The boy was nearly sixteen, hard as it was to believe sometimes. When Willy had told him he had to leave for a few hours, he knew in a flash something was wrong.

"Because I need you here, Charlie," said Willy. "Trust me, this isn't something you want to get... tangled up in."

"Can I at least know what's going on?" asked Charlie. Willy sighed and turned to him.

"Someday, perhaps. But not right now, Charlie. Right now... there's too little I have to do and so much time for me to talk to you." Charlie made a face, and Willy groaned, rolling his eyes. "Strike that, reverse it!"

"You're scaring me, Willy," said Charlie, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Don't be scared," said Willy, offering him a reassuring smile. "Everything's going to be okay." He ruffled the boy's hair and headed off to the glass elevator. "I'll be back very late so don't wait up for me. I'll see you in the morning, 'kay?" He looked over at Charlie, who seemed very disappointed, and slightly angry to be left in the dark.

"Whatever," he muttered, and sulked off. Willy sighed, but there was no time for him to make things right, right now, so he pressed a button and was gone. As the glass box hovered over the city, his mind began to wander again, thinking back on things he'd been pushing away for years.  
-  
(Picking up where the last flashback left off...)

That night, Willy did sneak out, only it wasn't for the movie. His father always stayed up late, reading dental magazines, but that didn't mean sneaking out was hard. His father always read in the living room, so Willy would sneak out through the bedroom window, the opposite side of the house. Then it was a four foot drop to the ground, and he was free to roam wherever he wanted.

Everytime he did this, he was convinced his father was watching him from somewhere, but he had yet to get caught. The theatre was only a few blocks away, and he managed to get there just as the movie was letting out. He recognized a few people from his school, some neighbors, a teacher, the crazy cat woman from across town, and finally, one of Rose's friends, shortly followed by Rose, who was talking and laughing with her friend, but seemed to be hugging herself tighter than usual.

Willy smiled (as best as possible with that ridiculous head gear) to himself, knowing she would never admit to being scared, even though she looked ready to crush herself. She spotted him and separated herself from her friend, catching up with him with a completely fake smile.

"So," he said softly. "How was the-"

"Keep walking," she muttered, her voice sounding deadly under that fony clown smile. He obeyed, and it wasn't until they were around the corner that he spoke again.

"Was it scary?"

"No!" she said, looking at him as if he were crazy. "Please, movies like that don't scare me!" But as she said this she hugged herself a little tighter, and he noticed. He simply nodded, knowing she'd never tell the truth.

"Okay," he said, and started walking in the opposite direction.

"Where are you going?" she asked, her voice slightly squeaky.

"I have to go home before my dad knows I'm gone," he said, then waved over his shoulder. He didn't get very far when...

"Will, wait!" He stoped and turned, looking at her as she fidgeted, shifted her weight from side to side, and wouldn't look up from the ground. "C-could I sleep at your house tonight?"

Part of him wanted to shout, "AH-HA!" in her face, and he took in a deep breath to do so. But she looked up at him and there were tears in her eyes. Tears? He had known her since they were babies and he had never once seen her cry! Never! Though she really wasn't crying much, just a little teary, but even that was a breakthrough.

"Why?" he asked. She looked off to the side, then to the ground and shuddered.

"I don't really feel like going home to monsters tonight. Please?" He half smiled, not fully understanding what she meant by that, but nodded and she jogged up to him. They snuck into his house through the bedroom window and they fell asleep on his bed almost the minute they were under the covers. The next morning she snuck out at the crack of dawn and his father never knew about it.  
-  
(Back to the present...)

Willy looked up at the terminal as passengers got off the plane with their bags, talking and smiling to each other, and he didn't rise from his seat until the last one got off before the flight attendants. When he saw her he sighed. She looked so different.

What used to be long brown hair was now cut into a short pixie cut and dyed black. She was slightly muscular, and had developed a tan from being outside so much, but in her eyes there was a hollowness to her. She seemed empty, numb, completely devoid of any sort of spirit. When she saw him, the smile she gave him was so fake that even he saw right through it. She walked up to him, and he stood up, making his way over to her.

"Hey, Will," she said, holding out her hand to shake his. "Thought that was you sitting over there."

"Hi Rose," he said with a smile. "Do you have any baggage?"

"No," she said, a hint of sadness coming over her. "When you called I was so... so rattled and not thinking clearly, I just took off with what I have... oh man..." She looked down, tears flooding her eyes, then she looked back up. "...my mom..." her voice trailed off, and he felt sympathy for her again.

"Yeah, I know," he said softly, putting an arm around her. "C'mon, let's go. The hospital's closed now, but we can go there tomorrow night." She nodded, wiping her face and recovering immediatly from whatever had come over her.

They boarded the glass elevator and rode along silently for a long time. Rose watched the city zoom by below her, and smiled to herself. Willy hadn't changed a bit. He looked different of course, but inside he hadn't changed. She looked up at him and realized he wasn't even looking at her. His mind was wandering as it often did and she sighed. "Will," she asked and his eyes glanced up at her, though his expression wasn't entirely friendly. She knew he didn't want her there, that he didn't want to see her again ever, but it didn't matter much to her right now. "Things between us... they're still the same, right?" He stared at her as if he were contemplating it, then looking back down on the city and shook his head.

"That was a long time ago, Rose," he answered rather bluntly, and they didn't speak to each other for the rest of the ride.  
----

When they arrived at the factory, Willy had all ready had the oompa-loompa's prepare a room for her near his so she could find him easily if she needed anything. It was around one thirty in the morning when they got to the factory, and they hardly said a word to each other as he showed her to her room. Then he went to bed, sleeping fitfully, his mind hardly allowing him to make it for a minute without thinking of her. 


	4. The Fight

(When Willy and Rose were both 12...)

"Do you have the camera?" Rose whispered to Willy. Willy fished through his backpack and pulled out the polaroid camera, which was a pain to lug around for as long as he had.

"Check," he said, handing it to her. She took it and inspected it as if to make sure it would work.

"There's film in there?"

"Yeah," he answered.

"Perfect," she said with a smile, and the slipped over to the house in the shadows. Today during school, Fred Jackson had set up the perfect prank on Willy, and had gotten away with it. During art, one of them 'accidentally' tripped the other so that a large bucket of bright red pain spilled all over Willy, staining and ruining his red sweater, the one his mother had given him. The boys hadn't known of course that it was the last present she gave him before she died, and ruining like that caused an angry fire to light inside of Willy like nothing anyone had ever seen.

When word reached Rose's ears what had happened, a plan had been set in motion, and they plotted together the entire afternoon to make sure nothing would go wrong. And now they were here, and for once there wasn't an ounce of Willy that wanted to be anywhere else. The crept up to the windows, and pushed the bathroom one open as quietly as possible. Once they were both in, Rose pulled out a large pink stuffed bunny from her bag, along with two Playboy magazines. Fred's room was just down the hall, and getting there was not much of a challenge. It seemed everyone in that house slept with their doors shut or slightly cracked, so getting down the hall wasn't much of a hassel.

It was opening Fred's door that was a problem. Rose pushed it slightly, and it squeaked on its hinges for a fraction of a second. They froze, staying deadly silent, then Rose grabbed hold of the knob and forced the door open fast so that it wouldn't squeak, a trick she had learned a long time ago. Then they crept in, the sounds of Fred's loud snoring drowning out their footsteps. Then Willy got the camera ready while Rose went to work. Moving with ease, she tucked the rabbit under Fred's arm, then moved the blanket off him so that his firetruck boxers were exposed. Then she opened the Playboys and laid them beside him, making it look like he'd been pouring over them a few minutes ago. Then she nodded and Willy and got out of the way.

Willy snapped the picture, but the flash was a little brighter than expected. They both ducked and waited silently for a few minutes. When Fred showed no sign of stirring, they crept back out, taking the rabbit and magazines with them and headed back for the bathroom. Along the way Rose stopped, spotting something on the counter.

"Hello, what have we here?" It was a Rollex watch, and a nice one too. She smiled and before Willy could stop her she picked it up and pocketed it.

"Rose!" he hissed, but she shushed him and forced him out the window. Once they were out and a few blocks away, he stopped and confronted her. "Why did you take that watch?"

"What?" she asked as if she'd done nothing wrong.

"That's stealing! People go to jail for that."

"Only when they get caught," she said, raising an eyebrow. "Tomorrow afternoon, I'm gonna sell it to a pon shop, and then use the money to buy me something nice."

"You never said we were gonna steal, Rose," said Willy, now starting to have regrets about what they had just done.

"Doesn't matter, does it now?" said Rose as more of a statement than a question. "C'mon, we need to make copies of the picture, remember?" He knew he'd never win this battle, so he gave in, going with her to do their dirty work. The next morning the pictures were copied and taped to various walls around the school for everyone to see. When everyone saw it, Fred became the laughing stalk of the halls, picked on and beat up on by different students. Willy and Rose had managed it without getting caught, but learned rather quickly that they didn't need to get caught in order for Fred to go after them.

Willy was on his way out of the playground when a blow landed on his jaw. He fell with a painful shout, and looked up to see who had hit him. Fred stared down at him menacingly, and kicked him in the ribs. "Think you're so funny, don't you, braceface. Think you're so smart."

"What did I do?" he started to ask, but was kicked in the face. Somewhere in the next five seconds virtually every student saw this, and they all came running over to them, cheering "Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!" They watched as Willy began to have the living daylights beat out of him, and part of him knew if it weren't for Rose, he'd have been going to the hospital that day.

Out of nowhere it seemed, Rose came running, tackling Fred's massive form to the ground, and attacked him like a wild animal, pulling his hair, biting his arm, scratching him with her fingernails, all the while screaming out words most of the students hadn't even heard yet. Willy say there, his nose bleeding, and his face throbbing in pain, and watched in horror as Fred somehow managed to shake off Rose, and throw her against the metal fence like a ragdoll.

She crashed to the ground, skinning her knees, and looked up just in time for his fist to make contact with her face. The force sent her falling backward so she hit her head very hard on the concrete basketball court, and she didn't get up. Willy felt his heart pounding, part of him afraid that the boy had killed her. He had to do something, and fast.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" he shouted, punching Fred in the face the minute the boy jerked around to look at him. Then, with strength that surprised even himself, he kicked Fred where the sun don't shine, and the boy fell on his knees with a painful cry. In fact, the force had been so hard he ended up vomiting, and there came a loud cheer from the people around him. For a breif moment, he smiled victoriously, even laughing a little, then he looked over at Rose, who was starting to sit up finally.

She looked slightly dazed, but when her eyes met his, she smiled, glancing at Fred's bent over form, and accepted Willy's hand up. They walked away, supporting each other, and laughing, even though their bodies were in agony. Rose took him to her house, her parents not even home yet so they wouldn't have to face a lecture just yet.

Rose made up ice packs for both of them and they sat on the kitchen floor, wiping off blood with paper towels, and rotating ice packs from various sore places. Rose had a nasty black eye coming in, and Willy's nose was bleeding very badly, but they both felt pretty happy with themselves. "My dad's going to kill me," said Willy after a minute.

"My parents won't be too happy with me either," said Rose. "And we'll probably get detention tomorrow at school." Willy frowned, knowing that wouldn't go over too well either. "Wow," said Rose, breaking his train of thought, and he looked up at her.

"What?"

"That's a lot of blood on your shirt." He stared, then smiled.

"It's not mine," he muttered, and Rose laughed, high fiving him.

"I think I'm becoming a bad influence on you Will," she said softly, flinching in pain. "But thanks, for helping me back there." He nodded.

"You're welcome"  
-  
(Back to the present...)

"When did you get in last night?" asked a voice. Willy was busy, working in the inventing room when Charlie showed up, not smiling, but not looking as frustrated as he had the night before. Willy looked up at him, then faked a smile.

"Oh, Charlie. I didn't hear you come in," he muttered. The boy didn't respond to this, and Willy tried to remember the question. "Almost two in the morning I think."

"Wow," said Charlie. "So are you going to tell me what happened last night, or is that still some big secret?"

"Not now, Charlie," said Willy, knowing what was coming. He didn't feel like arguing right now, much less socialize at all. But Charlie groaned in a clearly irritated tone.

"Why won't you tell me? Since when do you keep secrets from me, Willy? I thought we were friends."

"We are!" cried Willy, looking up at him appalled. "I just don't feel like talking right now."

"That's what you said last night," growled Charlie. When had he gotten so moody, Willy wondered. "I'm supposed to just hang around guessing until something happens that's either really bad or really good and then you finally crack and tell me? I'm not a little boy anymore, Willy. I deserve to know what's going on."

"You do," said Willy, nodding in agreement. "And you will. Just not right now, 'kay?"

"I really hate you sometimes, you know that?" snapped Charlie, and he walked off before Willy could say anything. Normally a comment like that would have hit like a bullet and he probably would have dropped to the ground in shock, but he knew Charlie didn't mean it, and understood a little of how he felt. The truth would come out when it was ready to, just not right now, and with that, he went back to work, not giving Charlie another thought.

Rose was still asleep in her bed, and her bedroom door and windows were locked so she couldn't get out. If anyone in the factory knew she was there... The oompa-loompas knew of course, but no one else could, at least not yet. You see, Rose was a little more well known to the world than you may think, but we'll let that explanation unfold in due time.

Right now, Willy could rest assured, knowing she wasn't going anywhere for a while, and knew he'd have to bring her breakfast in about an hour as well. Then she'd probably want to talk, and he'd more than likely avoid it. Circle of life, he thought to himself, and tried to fill his mind with thoughts of work rather than thoughts of Rose. When it would be time to see her, then he'd think about her, but now, he had enough on his mind. 


	5. Divorce

(A/N: No idea how old Willy was when he left home, so in this fic I'm gonna make him around fifteen or sixteen. I have a feeling he was slightly younger than that, but I'm gonna keep things this way 'kay?  
I LOVE YOU ALL!)

(When Willy and Rose were fourteen...)

"If Batman was so great, then how come he needs sidekicks?" argued Rose,  
shivering under her winter coat. It was December 23, the day before Christmas eve, and the last chance they had to hang out before their relatives invaded their houses.

"Oh yeah? Then what do you call Supergirl? And Batman's not afraid of little green rocks," he stated as they walked over to her mailbox. She pulled open the iced over door and fished around inside.

"Please. If the two were ever in combat with each other, Superman would cream Batman." She pulled out a pile of envelopes and flipped through them,  
barely scanning over adresses.

"Keep dreaming, Rose," said Willy, and without warning a pile of letters was shoved into his hands while Rose eagerly looked over the blue one in her hands. "What's that?" asked Willy, struggling not to drop any of the letters in the slush.

"It's from my dad," said Rose, a smile coming over her face. Rose's parents had split up a few months ago, but she had convinced herself from the start that it would never last. Though Willy never fully understood her reasoning,  
as long as she was happy, he was happy. For the last few weeks she had gone on and on about how he was coming home for Christmas this year, and she was so excited to see him again.

"He wrote you?" asked Willy.

"No, he wrote my mom," she muttered, reading the address. "But that's okay.  
We're all family." She tore the envelope open and read it silently, her smile fading. There were few times when Rose looked like an actual child when she smiled, and lately it was whenever she was talking about her dad. When the smile vanished, he knew something was wrong, and he could see her heart ripping apart in slow motion. Finally, she stuffed the letter back in the envelope and snatched up the letters from Willy violently.

"What's wrong?" he asked, and she huffed, hastily tucking a strand of hair behind her hair.

"He's not coming," she muttered. "But he sent us a present." She bit her lip angrily and looked at Willy as though she were about to shoot fire from her eye sockets. "He got the divorce papers finalized." Willy didn't know what to say to her. He stared at her, his mouth agape, and she groaned, storming off and into her house, slamming the door behind her with a loud bang.  
---- 


	6. Broken

(A/N: Sorry this took a while. The drama club put on our production of Suessical last weekend, which was a huge success by the way, and the school computers have blocked the site yet again, so posting updates will take a little longer. So some extra chapters to make up for what I missed and for what I'll probably miss in the next week. Cheers!)

(Back to the future!)

"Hand me the sizzling sugar, Charlie," said Willy, and Charlie picked up the bag and handed it to him.

"Here," he said softly, barely looking at the chocolatier. He was still very sour about the whole thing, and Willy tried to think of how to tell Charlie about Rose. It wasn't like explaining a long lost relative, unless of course the relative was on the FBI's most wanted list. Charlie would have a hard time understanding that too.

"So, how long are you out of school for?" he asked after a minute. Charlie looked up at him for a minute as though he were surprised Willy was talking to him, then shrugged.

"The rest of the week," the boy answered.

"That's good then. You finally have some time off to yourself."

"I guess," he muttered half heartedly and Willy looked at him concerned.

"You guess? Would you rather go to school? That's just weird!"

"Yeah, sure," said Charlie, standing up.

"Where are you going?"

"I've got homework to do," he said and walked off to the door. Before he was gone he turned to Willy with dark eyes. "And tell that chick you're hiding I said hi." Before Willy could even look up, Charlie was gone. He sighed, his head hanging down, and stroked his temples. Was nothing secret around here!  
----

It was around eight thirty when Willy finally went to Rose's room, and wasn't surprised to find her sound asleep on the bed. Being locked away, there was nothing to do but sleep. He noticed a bedside tray and realized the oompa-loompas had been giving her food. Of course they would. They would never allow anyone to starve, not on their watch. She had shed off her sweatshirt and t-shirt, leaving her in her blue jeans and a black undershirt. Her skin was very tan, but he noticed some strange bruising on her back and arms. Most likely from tangling with the wrong sort of person, but he couldn't be sure of that. She shifted slightly in her sleep and muttered softly, "I know you're there."

He jumped and her eyes opened lazily. "What are you doing?" she muttered.

"I..." he started, but couldn't think of what to say.

"Still one for words I see," she sighed, rolling over on her back, tucking one hand behind her head and resting the other on her stomach. "Any news on my mom?"

"She's slept through most of the day," said Willy softly. "They said she barely has any appetite. She won't eat." Rose turned her face away from him, tears falling down on her pillow, but her face barely showed any emotion. "I'll get you in there tonight," he said gently, looking at her. "But then you have to leave. If anyone found out you were here..."

"I know," she half grunted while shifting positions. "I'll be out of here soon, I promise Will. I just... I gotta make things right between us before..." Her voice trailed off and she sighed again. "You know I haven't spoken to her since that Christmas? No letters, phone calls, nothing. It's like we both chose to forget the other existed." She shifted again, her head facing the other way though her lower half was twised in the opposite dirrection. "What scares me is I completely forgot about her. Like time came and just wiped her away from my memory."

He understood completely what she meant, but couldn't help but wonder, had she forgotten him too? They had been through so much together as friends, had they really drifted that much? Enough to forget each other? What else was in his past that he had completely thrown out the window? "Rose," he asked and she glanced up at him. "What about..." he stopped. Did he really want to know? If she had forgotten him would he be angry? Could he be angry? He hadn't thought of her either till a few days ago when the dreams had started coming back.

The words were right there and he couldn't get them out. She must've seen his face though because she seemed to know what he was asking. She'd always been like that. "You?" she asked. Her mouth was opened as if she were about to immediatly shout out no... or possibly yes. But she slowly closed it as she actually thought out how to answer. "Whoa..." she muttered to herself, then looked up at him. "I guess... I never realized I had. Like one of those things that creeps up on you so slowly you never realize it's there." She smiled to herself and propped herself up on her elbows. "Then when you called... I just recognized your voice... which still hasn't cracked by the way." They both chuckled, and for a minute it was just like it had been all those years ago.

"What about you?" she asked. He bit his lip, knowing he couldn't tell her the truth, and yet not lie without her knowing. The only solution was to not answer the question and walk away. "Will?"

"We'll be leaving around eight thirty," he said softly, his back facing her. "I'll be back for you." And he left, closing the door gently behind him.  
----

(Picking up where the last flashback left off...)

"You've reached the Parker residence, please leave a message after the tone. Thankyou! BEEP!"

Willy sighed, closing his eyes. This had been his third attempt to get a hold of Rose, but she wasn't answering. He was sure he hadn't seen her leave her house, and could only guess she wasn't answering because she was too angry to talk to anyone.

"Hi," he said, deciding to leave a message this time. "Rose it's me... Willy. Uh... please call me back... 'kay? Bye." He hung up, frowning and slumped down onto the sofa. She had locked herself in her house for almost two hours, and he was becoming worried for her. How could her father do this to her? And right before Christmas too! He had guessed that the parents had decided it would be better for them that way, but certainly not for her. She didn't call him back that day, and he went to bed, still worried about her.

That night around eleven thirty, he woke to the sound of his bedroom window opening. His eyes snapped open, thinking it was a robber, and he sat up, picking up the bedside lamp as a possible weapon. Truth be told he didn't have the nerve to fight off anything that could have possibly come in, so it was fortunate for him that it was only Rose. At least... he was sure it was her.

She was hugging herself, her brown curls spilling down her back and shoulders, and he could hear her sniffling. "Rose?" he asked softly. She didn't answer him and he turned on the lights so he could see her. She was hugging herself so tightly it looked like she was about to snap herself in half. Her face was pale, and for the first time since he had known her, there was fear in her eyes. And she was crying, really crying. She didn't look like herself at all.

"What's wrong?" he asked softly. "What happened?"

"Turn off the light," she whispered. He stared at her confused.

"What!"

"Turn off the bloody light before your dad sees it across the hall!" she snapped.

"Oh!" he said, not really thinking of that before, and flipped the switch. Then he turned to her again and walked up to her. "Rose, what's going on?"

"I don't know," she whispered, her voice shaking with tears. "I was angry... so angry at him. And I ran away, deciding I was going to... I don't know what I was going to do to him. Probably yell and scream... give him what he deserves..."

"Or do something stupid," muttered Willy.

"Wouldn't be the first time," she whispered, a ghost of a smile on her face. "I was about halfway there when... I dunno, it just sunk in, everything that was going on."

"What did you do?"

"I did the only thing I could do, Will. I ran! I ended up going to the mall, and into one of those jewelry stores. I had to do something to get my mind off it, so I... took this." She rolled up her sleeve and revealed a silver bracelet with a charm in the shape of a dove on it.

"You didn't get caught!" he cried, his eyes widening. "What's wrong with you!"

"A lot of things, Will!" she snapped, shoving him violently. "My parents aren't together on Christmas, my dad's not coming to see me, it all sucks! And it's all my fault." At once he seemed to understand a little. So that was what this was about. She thought it was her fault her parents were divorced. That wasn't like her at all! She recoiled from him, collapsing on the floor in tears, and he moved over to her, lowering himself so he was sitting next to her. He tried to touch her but she wouldn't let him, pulling away from every attempt he made.

"Rose," he said softly. "It's not your fault." She didn't say anything and he attempted again to place a hand on her shoulder, failing again as she shrugged him off. "Your parents... what's going on with them is between them. You had nothing to do with it." She still said nothing, and he bit his lip. "Even though you're dad's not here, I am." Her head turned to him slowly as she blinked a tear away. "I'm here for you, Rose."

Her lower lip was trembling, and she looked away from him, tears falling down her face. Gently, he placed his hand on her shoulder, this time succeeding as she sort of surrendered. Next thing he knew she scooted closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her, holding and comforting her as she cried all night.  
----


	7. Hard To Understand

(We're sending you back to the future!)

Willy ran his sleeve over his eyes when he heard the door to the inventing room open. Charlie walked in, his hands in his pockets, and he looked at Willy as though he hadn't been expecting to see him at all. "Oh," he said when he first spotted him, and seemed to tell that the confectioner had been crying a few minutes ago. "Sorry," he started to say, then turned as if to leave him in peace, but Willy stopped him.

"Charlie," he called. The boy stopped and looked up at him. "Charlie sit down. I think its high time we talked about... some things."

"Last time someone told that to me I got THE talk from my mom..." he said, looking at Willy unsure. Willy smiled at him and shook his head.

"Nothing like that," he assured Charlie who took a seat across from Willy. "Dear boy, I have to apologize. I know I haven't been entirely honest with you lately, and I know you're mad. So, I've decided that since you own the factory too now, you deserve to know what's going on inside." He paused as if trying to decide where to begin. "Have you ever had a friend who... who would always get you in trouble."

"Everyone has, Willy," said Charlie.

"Not just a friend though, Charlie. I mean a really close friend. Someone who meant so much to you that... you never cared how much trouble they would, or could get you in."

"Well there's you for one," said Charlie. Willy grinned, knowing to a point that was true.

"I mean they could get you in trouble with the police. Like they constantly were doing bad things like... like stealing."

"No," said Charlie honestly. "Why? Are you in trouble."

"Not yet," he said without thinking, and quickly started talking again as soon as he realized what he had said. "That woman you saw earlier, her name is Rose Parker, and she's on the Most Wanted list." Charlie's eyes shot wide open and Willy nodded. "I grew up with her, Charlie, but I haven't seen her or spoken to her in a very long time."

"Why?" asked Charlie.

"Because... things just got too complicated. And I guess I was starting to understand that she really wasn't the sort of person I should be friends with."

"What tipped you off, the warrant for her arrest?" Willy gave him a look that told him he was in no mood for sarcasm, and Charlie stopped.

"You don't know her like I do, Charlie. That's partially why she's here. But she'll be leaving tomorrow morning I think so you won't have to worry about her again."

"I still don't understand why she's here, sir. Some sort of reunion?"

"Her mother's about to die. I promised her I'd let her know if something like this were happening. She may be a criminal and she may not be my friend anymore, but even she doesn't deserve not to know that her mother's dying. I think she should at least have the chance to say goodbye." There was a pause, then he cleared his throat. "Do you understand, Charlie?"

"I think so," he answered.

"You can't tell anyone, 'kay? This has to stay a secret."

"Okay," he said, and gave him a small but genuine smile.

"I just want you to understand, Charlie, that I'm not friends with her anymore. And if you ever meet someone like that, don't let yourself get attatched to them. You have no idea how much trouble will await you."

"Yes, sir," he said, and that was the end of their discussion on Rose. When they worked that day, for once there wasn't any tension built up between the two of them.  
-  
(The following scene(s) was inspired by LOST.)

Around seven thirty, Willy had allowed Charlie to go home early so that he could attempt again to have a conversation with Rose. He didn't know why he kept trying, but he supposed a part of him wanted to make things be the way they were once. She was awake this time, and he found her sitting up in the window seat, leaning against the wall and watching the night sky.

"Hey," he said with a small smile and she looked over at him.

"Hi," she said, forcing a smile and looked back out the window again. "I don't think I can do this, Willy," she muttered. "I'm scared to see her."

"I've never heard you say you're scared before," he said. "You've never been scared of anything."

"Idiots aren't scared of anything, Will," she said looking up at him. "I may be a lot of things but I'm no idiot." She sighed, looking away from him again. "Although... I guess you could say I've done enough dumb things to fall into that category, huh?" He couldn't argue with that, but knew if he agreed she'd probably attack him. Why did she always have to leave him in confusing situations like this?

"Well, we have an hour before we have to go," he said softly.

"Hey, do you think it's still there?"

"What?" he asked, looking at her confused. She looked at him, her head tilted to the side slightly and for a moment he saw that old spark in her eyes.

"You know what"  
----


	8. The Worst Christmas Ever

(Christmas Morning...)

Rose slipped out of his room again at the crack of dawn, and Willy felt exhausted. He knew he couldn't go back to sleep because this was usually the time he'd be waking up to go and see what was waiting for him under the tree. If he didn't his father would know something was up, and he didn't want that to happen. So, in keeping with tradition, he hussled down the stairs and down to the Christmas tree.

A few hours later he and his father had breakfast, and went about the rest of the day, enjoying Christmas to the fullest, at least until Willy conked out on the sofa and slept until about nine at night. Had it not been for the police siren it would have been longer. He looked up, his eyes blurry from sleep, and was surprised to find it was dark. It felt like he had just shut his eyes, but apparently he hadn't.

The siren went off again and he climbed off the sofa and to the front door to see what was going on. It wasn't until he saw the car was parked in front of Rose's house that he began to worry. "Oh no!" he muttered, panicking, but was interrupted by a rapping at the glass back door.

He hurried over and opened it, letting in a very terrified Rose. "Willy, you have to help me!" she cried. "I don't know how they found out, but the know about the bracelet. They're looking for me!"

Willy was becoming more afraid by the minute, and it grew worse when he heard his father's footsteps on the stairs. "Willy, what's going on down there?" he called. Rose yelped, and Willy grabbed her by the arm.

"C'mon," he said. They ran, cutting across back yards and fences until there were out of the neighborhood and almost a mile away from his house. "I don't know where we'll go," he said to her, looking for an answer.

"My dad's house is about a mile away," she muttered. "He'll help me." Something told Willy right off the bat that this was a bad idea, but since it was their only idea, they had no choice but to go with it. So they walked there, taking care in making sure they weren't being followed. When they finally arrived, Rose ran over to the window to see if he was home.

What she saw, Willy knew immediatly, was something no kid deserved to see. Her father was sitting on the sofa, his arm around another woman who was nuzzled up against him with a smile on her face, and he was bouncing a baby in his lap. They looked so happy, especially him, like he'd completely forgotten his other family... like they didn't matter anymore.

"Rose," Willy said softly, but Rose turned away, tears flooding her eyes. Her face was pale, and all it once it was like she had given up. She had nowhere to go, and there was no turning back now. She had tears in her eyes, and when the screeching of sirens came, she refused to run. Instead, she stepped out into the driveway, and stood still as the cops handcuffed her. Willy wished he could do something, anything to stop them, but watched helplessly as they guided her into the car.

Once she was in, the cops immediatly turned to him, questioning him, but he didn't hear a word they were saying. Rose looked over to him from the car, and when their eyes met, Willy felt his heart rip to shreds. She was sobbing openly like she had been the night before, only he couldn't help her now. Tears were pouring down his face, and in the end he was taken to the police station along with her.

The last time he saw her that day, she was being escorted to one of the cells. The light was completely gone from her eyes, and she didn't even look at him as they lead her off. A week later his father told him she had been sent to a correcting school for teen girls and a few months after that she had broken out. The night she had broken out had been the night he had run away from home and went to live with his grandparents.

Then gradually over the years he heard of how she had continued robbing from stores and banks, occasionally with other robbers, using them to help her get in, but in the end betraying them and taking off with everything. The last breaking report he had heard, she had killed an elderly man who had apparently been offering her a place to live. When he found out who she was she had killed him and gone back out on the run. The night he heard that on the news, he knew then and there he didn't want anything to do with her anymore. She wasn't the same person he had grown up with, not anymore.

There was a final time he saw her. To this day, he still didn't know how she found out where he was living, but she had. That was when she had given him her number. "Call me only in emergency, Will," she said to him.

"Why are you giving this to me?" he asked, eyeing her none too friendly. He was still upset about her latest crime that he wanted to litterally throw her out of the house.

"My mom's sick," she said softly, looking at him pleading. "If something happens with her, something bad, I want you to call me."

"Why should I," he muttered, pocketing the number anyway.

"Will, c'mon!"

"No!" he growled. "I can't believe you. After everything you've done you expect me to welcome you back, like it never happened?" She opened her mouth to speak, but he didn't let her. "Get out of this house now or I'll call the police." She looked down at the ground, and he knew he'd hurt her bad, but at least now she knew how it felt. Being silent and careful she slipped out of the house and disappeared into the night. That was the last time he'd seen her.  
----


	9. The Box

(Back to the future...)

The glass elevator hovered over the grass a few inches, then landed gently. Willy and Rose stepped out, turning on their flashlights, and Rose walked over to a very large oak tree. Willy hadn't been in this neighborhood in years. He could barely remember it, but looking around he was able to pick out some of the houses that families he once knew lived in. That had been a long time ago.

Rose took three giant steps from the tree, and Willy couldn't help but laugh. She looked so funny, and for a brief second, it looked like she was going to fall over. He walked over to her, handing her a shovel and stuck his in the ground.

"I'll be amazed if we can find it again," he muttered.

"We will. No one else knew about it did they?" He shook his head and they started digging. What they were looking for had been burried a lot deeper than they remembered, and it was about a half hour before they finally unearthed it. A wooden box, clumps of dirt still caked on it, and they pulled it out, setting it on the ground. "I told you it was still here," she said, looking up at him with a smile. He smiled back and watched as she turned to open it. They were about to open it when there was a crack of thunder, followed by the downpour of rain. Both of them hurried into the glass elevator, and they took off, stopping when they were about fifty feet up from the ground and they stayed in midair, sitting on the glass floor and opened it.

The first thing she pulled out was a baseball cap that didn't fit her anymore. "My hat!" she said smiling. "And your dinosaur," she added, pulling out the small green figurine. He took it and looked it over. He had completely forgotten about it!

"And your necklace I got you for your birthday," he said, pointing to it. She smiled, pulling it out, and held it up to get a better look at it. A silver one with a dog tag that said 'Best'. There was an identical one that read 'Friends'. In all honesty she didn't remember who had owned which, but decided to take his word for it.

"Oh man," she said pulling two small photos out. "Here we go, Will. Our seventh grade school pictures."

"I don't know if I want to see that," he muttered as she handed him his, and he nearly gagged. There were those awful braces that still gave him nightmares. And his school uniform was dreadful. Oh, how glad he was that those days were over! Rose's picture wasn't much better. Her hair was very messy and she had chocolate all over her mouth. It almost looked like an elementary school picture.

"I did that on purpose, remember?" she said. "I refused to dress up for that stupid picture, and my parents nearly killed me." She laughed and he smiled. She looked so different in that picture, and it wasn't because her face was a mess. It was her eyes. They didn't look so... sad in the photo. In fact, it was nearly impossible to recognize her from that picture. He had changed a lot too, but he liked his changes more than hers.

"What's this?" she asked, pulling out a tape recorder.

"I... don't remember," he muttered, looking at it. "Play it." She pressed the button then turned up the volume for them to hear.

"Okay," said a much younger Willy. He smiled at the sound of his young voice, and secretely admitted that Rose was right. His voice hadn't cracked yet. "Today's September 28, 1981, and this is a time capsul. My name's Willy Wonka-"

"And I'm Rose Parker," cut in another voice. Rose laughed and Willy smiled. They sounded so much younger on that tape. Were they really that old? "Why are we doing this, Will. It's so cheesey."

"Yeah, in about twenty, thirty years from now when we go back and dig it up, it'll be so cool to us."

"Whatever. I just can't believe you're putting your favorite dinosaur in there."

"Trust me, it'll be so awesome when we dig this up." Willy smiled to himself, and looked over at Rose. She was smiling, but looked like she was holding back tears.

"What do you think our lives'll be like in twenty or thirty years?" asked the younger Rose.

"I'm going to be a candymaker like I said I would, and you'll become a writer like you want to." Rose snorted. Boy had he been wrong! "And we're going to get married too. And have a family." They both froze and looked at each other.

"You really think we will?" little Rose asked, her tone saying she doubted it.

"Of course we will. Isn't that what always happens to friends like us? We grow into highschool sweethearts, and then twe end up getting married."

"I guess so," said the younger Rose, and the tape stopped. Rose set it back in the box, and neither of them could speak. Willy saw her face change, and for once it was like he was looking at the Rose he had known and grown up with. For once, he recognized her.

"Wow. That was kinda weird," muttered Willy, looking up at her. She nodded and forced a smile.

"Funny how things turn out, right?" Her fake smile didn't hold, and she looked away, her eyes staring out the glass. "What happened to us, Willy?" she asked softly.

"We changed," he said, half sighing. "Things change when you're not around, Rose."

"Will, I..." She looked at him as if trying to find the words to say, but couldn't, and looked down. "I never wanted to get like this... you gotta believe me. I was young, and I was so scared. One thing led to another, and... and... I just became a person I didn't want to be, and still don't."

For a moment, he felt bad for her. But it still didn't excuse some of the things she did... even the murder he had tried not to remember until now. "Rose, I have to ask you because I need to know the truth," he whispered. "Why did you kill that man?"

Her head snapped up at him, searching his eyes, then she turned her face to the glass again. "It was an accident," she whispered. He looked at her confused and she took in a deep breath. "He was driving me to the airport, and about halfway there I saw these cops driving behind us, following us. I knew they'd seen me, and he pulled over to this gas station and had a look on his face. He told me he was sorry, but he had no choice, and parked the car. That was when I found out he had known all along, and had gone to the police behind my back.

"I was so scared, so I pulled a gun at him. It wasn't loaded of course, but he didn't know that and I forced him out the car so I could drive. When he was out, I told him I was sorry, and started to drive out. He ran in front of the car in an attempt to stop me, and I didn't have enough time to slam on the brakes..." Her voice trailed off and she placed a hand over her mouth. "I didn't mean to hit him," she whispered. "And I would have stopped to make sure he was okay, but I didn't have enough time to so I drove off. The next day was when I found out he had died... that I had killed him."

She was shaking, and looked up at him as if looking for forgiveness. "I never wanted to hurt him. He was so kind to me, and even when he told me he had ratted me out to the cops, I wasn't angry. I understood completely, and I was trying to get him out of there before the cops came to save him. I never wanted it to happen like that." She shrank away miserably in the corner of the elevator, reliving that horrible day that she'd been forced to live with for the rest of her life.

He believed her though. He didn't know why, and knew he probably shouldn't, but the pain on her face was genuine, and he knew she would never purposely kill anybody. It still hurt him to think that she had killed someone, but seeing her like this hurt even more. He wanted to comfort her, just wrap his arms around her like everything was going to be okay, but there was no guarantee of that and he knew it. So he sat there and watched as she slowly disappeared into herself again and looked up at him.

"C'mon," he said softly. "We'd better get to the hospital"  
----


	10. Hi, Mom

Willy and Rose stood outside the hospital and exchanged glances. "Ready?" she asked. One last adventure, he thought to himself. He had changed his clothes so that he was wearing blue jeans and a black hooded sweatshirt, his hair stuffed under a baseball cap. Rose had changed her outfit as well, dressing up so she looked younger... though sort of clownish with all the extra makeup.

"Here we go," she muttered, and slung her arm over his shoulders, immediatly bending over and clinging at her stomach as though it hurt, and he helped support her in as she proceeded to cry out in pain. He was impressed. She was still a good actress. "AAUUGH!" she shrieked. "Somebody help me!" The nurse behind the desk looked up in alarm and ran over to them.

"We were having dinner when she suddenly started screaming about her stomach," said Willy, looking frantic. "I don't know what's wrong with her." Rose gave another painful cry, and the nurse switched places with Willy.

"We'll take you to an empty room, and the doctor will be right with you," she said over Rose's fake cries.

"'Kay," said Willy. "I need to make a quick phone call. You're gonna be all right, Julie!"

Willy waited till they were gone, then went over to the computer behind the desk. He had a name and began to search frantically to find her room. It wasn't as hard as he thought it would be, and once he had the room number, he shut down the computer and turned it on again, not really knowing how to make it so it wouldn't stay on the page with Rose's mother's room number and personal information. Willy then proceeded down the hall and into the room they had placed Rose, who was still screaming.

"I called your brother," said Willy. "He said he's on his way." Rose looked up at him and nodded, then gave out another scream of pain.

"Can you watch her while I get the doctor?" asked the nurse to him.

"Yes, of course," said Willy, and he hurried over to Rose's side, taking her hand. "You're gonna be okay, 'kay? Just try to calm down."

"It hurts!" she shouted, and looked over his shoulder. The nurse was gone and she winked at him. "Okay, let's go," she whispered. They slipped out of the room silently, locking the door to buy them some time, and hurried over to the elevator.

"You're mother's in room 286. Go and see her while I keep watch. If you hear me knock three times, get out of there," he whispered. She looked at him, thinking he was starting to sound like her and nodded.

"I'm scared," she whispered.

"It's going to be okay," he said, lightly patting her on the shoulder, and walked with her up to the door, leaning against the wall and watching for nurses. Rose stepped in, looking at the bed and saw her mother laying there. Her hair was gone, and she looked so tired. Rose bither lip and walked over to her, kneeling down.

"Hi, mom," she whispered. Her mother's eyes wandered around the room until they met hers, and for a minute she stared at her as if she didn't recognize her.

"Rose?" she said in a tone that was barely audible.

Rose's eyes were threatening tears and she nodded. "I love you, Mom," she whispered, trying so hard not to break down. "I'm so sorry... for everything I've put you through. I'm so sorry, Mom." She was still trying so hard not to give in, and baried her face in the bed sheets. She could feel her mother's shaky hand stroke the top of her head, and she looked up at her.

"I... l-love you... sweetheart," she whispered. "You were always... my little girl... no matter what you did." Rose smiled briefly, placing her hand on her mother's cheek. The bittersweet moment was interrupted by three sharp knocks. Rose looked up and gasped.

"I have to go, mom," she whispered. "I love you." She turned and ran to Willy, and the two of them ran down the hall and to the opposite elevator. When the doors opened, they ran into the waiting room, hearing the shouts of the nurse trying to stop them, and they ran into the glass elevator, taking off before they could be caught.

Willy sighed with relief once they were close enough for the factory to be in sight, and for a brief moment, he was sure she was about to start crying. One thing that had yet to change with her was the fact that she almost never cried. There had been a few exceptions, but it took the most dire circumstances to get even a tear out of her. But she was so silent, it made him nervous. This was another one of those confusing times when he didn't know if he should say something or not. Perhaps she didn't want to talk right now. Maybe she needed to be alone. Well, if she did she would definitely voice it, so he gave it a shot.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah," she muttered, and at once he saw her shell come up again. What ever weakness that was threatening to come out before was gone now. She had turned back into her cold self and he hated it. He hated her like this, and hate was a very strong word for him. "I have to sleep a little, Will. I'm so tired. I'll be out of here by four thirty or five, I promise. I just need to sleep." He nodded, understanding what she meant.

They arrived into the factory, and she split off from him and went to bed, barely even saying goodnight to him. The next morning she left just like she said she would, leaving behind a letter for him.

"Dear Will,

I can't tell you how greatful I am for everything you did and have done for me in the past. I really wish things could be different for us, but they aren't. If I could, I would take everything back. The shoplifting, the lying, and especially the man I killed. I wish we could have lived out our dream of becoming highschool sweethearts and getting married, but we both know that can't happen either. Chances are we won't be able to see each other again face to face too.

But there's one thing I have to tell you Will, and I need you to understand it because it's really important. I never forgot about you. Ever. I still have dreams about you some times, about how things used to be. You've amazed me with what you've done, and when worst came to worst with your father you were still able to rise above the rest. I'll never know how you did that, but you did it, and I'm happy for you. I'm sorry for all the pain I've caused you over the years, and I'm sorry that we had to meet again under these circumstances. I hope you'll be able to forgive me some day, and maybe, if we get lucky, we'll be able to live as we used to, as friends.

I'll miss you, and I'll never forget you, I promise you.  
Sincerely, Rose"

Willy folded the letter so it would fit into his jacket pocket, and kept it close to him the remainder of that day. In his heart he knew he would see her again, he just couldn't promise the circumstances would be any better.  
----

"When your life has gone wrong/ And you're wondering why/ When your tail is so long/ You're unable to fly/ Tell yourself how lucky you are/ Why de-cry a cloudy sky/ An empty purse? A crazy universe/ My philosophy is simply/ Things could be worse/ So be happy you're here/ Think of life as a thrill/ And when worse comes to worse/ As we all know it will/ Thank your lucky star you've gotten this far/ And tell yourself how lucky you are"  
-'How Lucky You Are,' Suessical the Musical.

(This is the end of Part 1, or Act 1, or whatever you'd like to call it. Part 2 is not a different story, meaning you'll still find it here. I'm just taking a brief break from this story for Christmas, mostly because the Christmas season is supposed to be happy, and this story is sort of angsty. So around the beginning of January-ish, we will resume. Thank's and luv you all! And if you didn't read the above lyrics (be honest people) please do. They're so true. And forgive me for being politically incorrect, but I still say Merry Christmas.  
-Smeagol's (Ociffer! I swear to drunk I'm not God!) girl) 


	11. Part 2

Part (or Act) 2 When You Bargain With the Devil

"You are the tempter of my soul/ Do Wrong, Mr. Do Wrong/ Don't you whisper in my ear/ Trying to sing your love song/ I know it's sweet/ Like candy on my lips/ But I know who you are/ Death is on your fingertips/ Death is on your fingertips/ And everything you do is wrong"  
-'Mr. Do Wrong,' Guardian

(Three months after Rose left...)

"Let's try this again, one more time," muttered Willy, handing the piece of taffy to the nervous oompa-loompa. Charlie watched in anticipation, and they waited as the oompa-loompa chewed on it for a while. At once it began to bob its head to some unheard tune, and then started dancing while other oompa-loompa's watched him curiously.

"Finally! We have a winner," said Charlie with a smile. This particular taffy they were working on was for kids who were stuck with extremely boring classes in school. Each piece played one song, any song you wanted, and the chewer would be the only one who could hear it. The first few tests had been disaterous, and the poor oompa-loompa's had to suffer from it. The first few trials were far too loud, causing some of them to go deaf for a while. Then they had a hard time toning it down. One oompa-loompa had tested a piece and instead of playing something like the Beatles, or Led Zeppelin, it played a violent headbanger Slipknot song (that oompa-loompa was now in counseling for his sudden urges of violence). From the looks of things, and judging by the way the oompa-loompa was dancing, Micheal Jackson's 'Thriller' was playing just perfectly as the little guy zombie danced around the room.

"I was actually beginning to worry about this one Charlie," said Willy as they cleaned up for the day. "I didn't want another one of my oompa-loompa's reacting like the one had."

"Well, his shrink says he's stopped biting the heads off dolls," said Charlie with a shrug. Willy grinned at him, and went over to put away some of his tools as Charlie wiped down the counter. "Heard anything from Rose lately?" he asked, his back still facing Willy. The chocolatier stopped dead in his tracks, and glanced over at Charlie. The topic was a rather raw one for him, but he knew he had to answer the boy.

"No," he answered, unable to hide the disappointment from his voice. She had moved to the states and was renting a room with a woman name Justine. He would call at least once a week to give Rose an update on her mother, as per her request. But the week her mother died, he tried to call to tell her, but Justine informed him that she had moved out, completely surprising her. There had been no sight or sound of her since.

And though he didn't want to be, he was scared for her.

"I'm sure she's okay," Willy said after a minute. "She's been able to take care of herself this long."

"Yeah, if you call hiting the most wanted list taking care of yourself," said Charlie.

"You don't know anything about that," Willy said suddenly, turning to face the boy. "You have no idea what she has or hasn't done, so you have no right to judge her. Besides, I know her a lot more than you. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," said Charlie, who looked away. Willy paused for a minute, then went back to work. "Uh... Willy, I need to talk to you about something, but it has to stay between us." Willy glanced over his shoulder curiously. Charlie never ever came to him with things he couldn't come to his family with. He began to wonder if this was going to be bad.

"'kay...?" said Willy, turning around to give him his attention. The boy looked as though he didn't know where to begin, then took a seat on the counter.

"Well... there's a girl I know-"

"Oh really?" asked Willy, smiling devilishly.

"It's not like that," said Charlie, who blushed anyway. "She's just a friend. But, she's got a thing for the football team captain and-"

"Oh! That stinks," said Willy. Charlie rolled his eyes.

"I'm not jealous!" cried Charlie. "She's JUST a friend. It's just... this guy... I don't trust him. I don't think he's the type of person she should go out with but I don't know how to tell her that."

"Bad in what way?" asked Willy.

"Well, for one thing he's eighteen and been held back for failing his senior year. But the thing is, he likes her too... but because he thinks she's pretty and thinks she's..." his voice trailed off and he hoped the candyman would be able to pick up what he meant. When Willy looked at him confused, he sighed and decided to elaborate a little. "All he can talk about is her body and what he wants to... do to it."

"Oh!" said, Willy, catching on fairly quickly.

"He's just very sick, and she doesn't see it. What do I do?"

"Well, if you're really her friend you'd try to tell her," said Willy. "If you're looking out for her, as I assume you are, you'll tell her. She may not believe you, but keep telling her. And if you really think she's in danger, tell a teacher."

"I don't think she is yet. I just don't want to wait until she is. She's like my sister in a way." Willy knew the feeling and nodded.

"The thing with girls is they have a way of filtering out all the bad stuff in a guy so that they see only what they want to see," Willy explained. "Some cases that's a good thing, and in some cases, like this, it's not. But chances are she'll come to see that some day. You just gotta give it time"  
Charlie nodded and looked at his watch. "Well, Mom's probably waiting for us. You coming to dinner tonight?"

"Yeah," said Willy. "Just give me a minute and I'll be there." The boy left and Willy smiled. He was becoming smarter about things lately, and it made him happy as he watched it. But he couldn't get Rose off his mind, and all he could do was pray that she was all right, where ever she was.  
----

(Somewhere in the states...)

Rose lay shivering on the concrete floor as the cold winter breeze blew by her. She had come to find that it almost never mattered where she'd go, it was always going to be below freezing. She had attempted to light a fire before, but it was too cold, and any wood she found was damp from snow.

She had finally found the house that had been abandoned for years and she could easily break into The only good thing it provided though was somewhere dry to sleep. The electricity had long been shut off, and windows were broken no doubt from some punk kids. There were nights she was afraid she'd freeze to death, but somehow she always managed to wake the next day... wake up to another day with no place to go.

This time of year made things worse for her. It was going to be Christmas soon, and twenty years since the day everything had gone wrong. She had not celebrated Christmas with any family since then, hadn't recieved any presents or gave any, and had no one now to worry about her on Christmas. She had come to hate the holiday, and always tried to find some way to ignore it so that it didn't bother her too much.

Deciding she'd attempt the fire again, she reached in her pocket for the lighter. A pile of damp firewood was in the fireplace, and she had found a bunch of newspapers in the kitchen. Everytime she clicked on the lighter it blew out, but she tried again and again, determined she would get warm tonight. Her hands hurt and her thumb felt raw, but she didn't give up, no matter how angry and frustrated she got. Finally, she lit a newspaper on fire and quickly placed it in the fireplace. It took a few minuted of fussing, but she soon had a fire going in it and scrambled to warm herself.

And at that moment, for some unknown reason, she thought of Willy. He was the only one who would care about her this time of year she supposed. She wondered if he thought of her at all. How she wished she could talk to him, just one more time, but to go back would be too risky. Besides, she didn't want to put him through that again. Fortunately there were alternatives. She looked around for a piece of paper and something to write with. Then, not really knowing what else to do, she wrote down the only thing she could thing of, then made a note to mail it in the morning.  
----

(Back at the Factory...)

A letter was laying on his pillow when he finally decided to turn in for then night. There was no return address, just the sending address. It wasn't a business envelope, so he became even more curious as to who sent it. He never got personal letters from people, not even his father, and the fact that there was no return address was a little weird.

He opened it, taking a seat on his bed, and unfolded the paper. Inside was one simple line, but it sparked back so many memories.

"Dear Willy Wonka,  
I'm thinking of you, and wishing we all were in Solla Sollew."

"Rose," he muttered to himself, shaking his head. She was the only other person he remembered who knew what that line was from. "Rose, where are you"  
---- 


	12. Solla Sollew

Willy was very antisocial when Charlie found him the next day in the inventing room. The man was so focused on his work that he hardly looked up to even see that the boy was there. "I was looking for you last night," said Charlie. "You weren't anywhere in here. Did you go out?" Willy gave him no answer and for a moment Charlie thought the confectioner hadn't even heard a word that had come out of his mouth. But he decided to keep on trying, knowing Willy was bound to hear him at some point.

"I was kinda worried. You weren't visiting Rose were you?" he asked. Still Willy offered no answer or acknowledgement of hearing him, so Charlie made a final attempt that proved more useful. "A wangdoodle is attacking your llama!"

Willy looked up horrified and ran for the door. "Oh no!" he cried as he darted out. "Not my llama!" Charlie rolled his eyes and leaned against the counter, waiting and counting down in his mind 3...2...1... Willy stomped back in, giving Charlie a dark look and snorted. "I don't even have a llama!"

"Well now that I have your attention," muttered Charlie. "Where the heck were you last night?"

"I was in the factory, don't be ridiculous!" said Willy, still seeming slightly steamed about the llama comment. Truth be told, he was rather irritated having to remember he had yet to acquire one of the greatest creatures in the world.

"Yeah, but where in the factory? I couldn't find you anywhere."

"My room," he muttered, finally seeming to ease up. This made sense now since Charlie didn't know where Willy's room was. He'd never had the need to go there or see it, so naturally he had never made an attempt to find it.

"Oh," said Charlie. He started to push himself off the counter when his fingers brushed against something and he looked down at it. A piece of paper lay folded over, and deciding it wouldn't harm anything, he picked it up and read it. His face scrunched up in confusion and he glanced up at Willy who had yet again bussied himself with his work. "Solla Sollew?" he asked.

Willy looked up from his work and stared at Charlie. "What?" he asked.

"What's Solla Sollew?" asked the boy, gesturing to the note in his hands. Willy walked up to him and snatched it away.

"That's none of your-" he paused... then stared at him for a minute as if something was suddenly registering to him. "Solla Sollew..." he muttered. "That's it!" And without another word he ran off to the elevator. Charlie, who was getting frustrated from being confused, followed him, and rode with him into the television room.

"Willy, what's going on?" he asked during the bumpy ride, getting jerked in every direction, but making a good attempt at not losing his balance.

"She was trying to tell me something," he muttered, glancing at Charlie.

"Rose sent this?" asked Charlie, holding up the note.

"It's a clue to where she is," he muttered.

"Why would she want to give that away?" asked Charlie. "I thought she said she wanted to be out of our lives and leave us alone?" Willy gave him a look and Charlie corrected his words. "YOUR life, I mean," he muttered.

"Yeah, but I think she might be in trouble."

"Why? Is that what Solla Sollew means? Is it some sort of weird language for 'danger'?" Willy rolled his eyes. Kids these days, so oblivious!

"It's a song!" he snapped, snatching the note from Charlie. The arrived at the TV room, and he ran to a nearby cabinet. Actually, it looked like it was just part of the wall, but when Willy pushed on it, a small door popped open and he started looking around through everything inside. Charlie recognized all the videos and glanced at the candy maker.

"I thought you didn't watch movies!" he cried.

"I dabble," muttered Willy, and he finally pulled one out. "Ah-ha!" he cried in victory and walked over to the TV.

"Willy, what on earth is going on?"

"You'll see," he muttered and popped it in. The tape was old, and as it started to play on the screen Charlie realized it was recorded when Willy was about his, Charlie's, own age! And sure enough, there were those ugly braces in all their glory. Why had his father hated him so much? Actually, as he looked closer they appeared to be toned down a bit. Not as noticeable at least.

"What is this?" asked Charlie.

"When Rose and I were sixteen, we both were in our highschool's drama club," he explained. "Usually we just did crew, but one year we did the play, Suessical, and chose to be in the cast. Both of us got lead roles actually. She was Jojo, and I was the Cat in the Hat."

"Go figure," muttered Charlie.

"One of the songs in the play was a lullaby called Solla Sollew, and a bunch of the characters sing it together. I don't though, I just sit off in the corner and watch as Horton the elephant and the Whos sing it."

"Horton Hears a Who," said Charlie, looking up at Willy. "I remember that book!"

"Okay," said Willy, stoping the tape on the right spot. "Now, Horton's lost the clover with the Whos and he's stuck in that nest because he promised Lazy Mazie that he'd sit on her egg while she took a break for an hour. She doesn't return and these hunters come and take him, tree and everything, leaving the Whos abandoned wherever they are, and Horton gets sold to a man from a circus. While he's there, Mazie comes back, tells him she's proud because he's such a huge success and lets him keep the egg. Which takes us to this part where he sings the song. Listen closely to the words because I think the clue is in the lyrics. 'kay?"

"Wait, who's Jojo?"

"He's a Who boy who's off in the millitary school, and is waiting for Horton to find him."

"Rose played a boy?" asked Charlie, laughing.

"Yeah. She slugged me every time I reminded her of that," said Willy smiling softly, then he reached over and pressed the play button. The stage was set to look like the inside of a large circus tent, and a girl dressed up in a hoochie skirt with a long tail (probably Mazie) walked off stage while a kid dressed up like an elephant (Horton) held on to an egg. The audience was still applauding from the last song, and then the music came in. It was slow, and sort of sad, and Horton looked down at the egg.

"I said what I meant," he said softly. "And I meant what I said. An elephant's faithful one hundred percent"  
-  
(The speaker in the following scene is Horton carrying on with the song. Just so you don't get confused.)

Rose was shivering in her sleep, despite the fire beside her. Shadows were moving by the window, unaware of her presence.

"And now little egg, you're alone in the universe too."

A twig snapped, and her eyes snapped open as she poked her head up to look around.

"Who would have thought you'd be left up to me. Fool of an elephant, up in a tree"  
----

Willy and Charlie watched the screen closely, as the quality wasn't so great, but at least they could hear all right.

"But this time I swear I'll do better than try! I'll protect you from harm, yes, I'll do it or die."

Willy's eyes strayed down, his mind straying to Rose, and he hoped that she was all right, wherever she was.

"So rest now, young egg, and I'll sing you a lullaby"  
----

"There's a faraway land so the stories all tell. Somewhere beyond the horizon..."

Rose slowly got to her feet and hugged herself, shivering from the cold and able to see her breath. She heard voices whispering and sneaking up the stairs and she felt scared. Who was in there with her?

"If we can find it then all will be well. Troubles there are few. Someday we'll go to Solla Sollew"  
----

From stage right, Rose/Jojo entered, laying down on what looked like a cot and pretended to be writing on a pad of paper while the Cat in the Hat loomed over her shoulder.

"Solla Sollew, Solla Sollew. Solla Sollew, Solla Sollew."

Charlie glanced up at Willy as if trying to read his expression, then turned back to the screen, watching to see what would happen.

"I've lost my poor Whos. And we've travelled so far. Jojo, forgive me, wherever you are."

"Dear Mom and Dad," came Jojo's voice as the spotlight moved over to him. "I'm thinking of you, and wishing we all were in Solla Sollew"  
----

Rose crept up the stairs, trying to be as quiet as possible as she heard the voices of people coming from one of the old bedrooms. "Who's there?" she called out, making sure she sounded as unfriendly as possible.

"They say breezes are warm there and people are kind. Maybe it's something like Heaven..."

Rounding the corner, the voices stopped to dead silence, listening to her approaching. She came to the room with a door wide open and looked in. Three teenage boys were sitting there playing a game of cards with...

She squinted, having a hard time believing what she was seeing, but when she smelled it, she knew she was right. Cigarrettes and beer! "Who are you, and what are you doing in my house!" she cried. Truth be told, this wasn't her house, but they still had no right being there.

"Who are you?" asked one of the boys, sneering at her as if she were scum.

"You have two minutes to get out of here before I call the cops!" she bellowed. "Get out of my house!"

"I close my eyes and I see in my mind, skies of bluest blue. Solla Sollew"  
----

"I've had so much trouble finding my way there. When I get close it disappears..."

Willy suddenly went stiff, his eyes moving away from the screen, and Charlie glanced up at him. "Willy?" he asked. Willy didn't answer but his entire expression changed, his mouth opening as if he had just seen something terrible, and his eyes starting to tear up. He was flashbacking, and it wasn't a good one from the looks of it.

"Sooner or later I know I will get there, if it takes us miles... If it takes us years"  
----

Willy could see the snow falling, and Rose backing away from the window in her father's house, her face completely devoid of any hope. Then he heard the sirens of police cars as they pulled in, and came out over her, shouting angrily at both of them, but mainly to her. He saw them stuff her in the back and drive away with her, staring at him completely exhausted and in pain. All he could do was watch helplessly as they took her away.

----

"High on a mountain or lost on the sea, sooner or later I'll find it..."

Willy came back to reality and looked back at the screen, blinking away tears. He knew Charlie must still be staring at him curiously, but there was nothing to say, so he remained silent.

"I have a picture of how it will be, on the day I do. Troubles will be through."

He bit his lip, remembering the next line, and thinking of Rose the entire time.

"And I'll be home with you...

Solla Sollew"  
----

Rose was only halfway down the stairs when she heard one of the boys shout, "Crap! She did call the cops!" Her eyes popped open and she turned looking out the window. A police car was parked outside the house, and a cop was all ready almost halfway to the door. She cursed under her breath and grabbed her jacket, leaping out through the back door and took off running when-

"FREEZE"  
----

Willy turned off the TV and got to his feet. "Come on. No time to lose," he said to Charlie, still brushing tears from his eyes. "I know where Rose is"  
----

(A/N: I had to have that song in here somewhere because it was my favorite one in the play. Download it sometime and listen to it, I mean it. It's beautiful. Cheers!) 


	13. You Can't Trust Me

"FREEZE!"

Rose stopped dead in her tracks and looked back to the cop who was now pointing a gun at her. Her heart was racing, and she didn't know what to do.  
It had been a long time since she had to out run a cop.

"Get your hands in the air and get on your knees!"

She didn't move, and knew the cop would have to approach her sometime to force her down. "I said get down!" roared the cop. Still Rose did not obey,  
but remained still, her hands shaking and her body starting to feel the cold.  
She would have put on her jacket had she not been afraid of recieving a shot in the back for it. It seemed like hours of trying to outlast the could before the footsteps finally approached her, crunching in the snow.

"You got a problem listening!" demanded the cop, shoving her down to the ground.

"Augh!" she cried suddenly, grabbing at her ankle. "My ankle! I hit it on a rock!"

"Get your hands in the air!" shouted the cop.

"Hold on!" she shouted, looking up at the cop. "I wanna check my ankle"  
She gently slid up her pant leg as if she really were in pain, and the cop watched her carefully, not taking his eyes off her. He hardly had time to catch a glance at the glint of metal when she lashed out at him, ripping the knife out from its hidden place and stabbing him in the knee. The cop gave a cry of pain as he collapsed on his knees, and she kicked his arm, sending the gun flying a few feet away.

Scrambling to her feet and running fast, she picked up the gun and took off running, the cop shouting for reinforcements behind her. She kept on running, not knowing where she was going, and not caring. All she had to do was be fast. That's all that mattered. She cut across fields and down streets,  
until she was running through an empty feild, hopefully a good distance away. She was barely concious of anything going on around her, but kept on going until her energy was spent.

She finally came to a stop, slowing into a walk until she collapsed, leaning her back against a brick wall panting for air. Her body had reached its limit and so had her will to keep on going. Everything was so hopeless, and she shook miserably, fingering the gun in her hands. She hated her life and what she had let it turn into. Most people could change what they didn't like, but for her there was no turning back. She had made her bed and would be forced to lay in it till the day she died. Maybe even longer.

The cops would find her soon, she knew this. Hiding was pointless now. But if she turned herself in she would go to jail, which had scared her ever since she could remember. Why had she been so stupid when she was young? Why did this have to haunt her forever? She'd rather die than face this any longer.  
"Well," her mind seemed to tell her. "You have the gun in your hands. Why not do it? What have you got to lose?"

Her eyes loomed down at the gun in her hands as she contemplated this.  
What had she to lose? Sneering, she answered her own question. "Nothing"  
she muttered bitterly, and she held the barrel up to her head, her finger finding the trigger. Shaking, she counted to three then started to tighten her muscles.

"My dear young lady!" spoke an astounded voice. "What on earth are you doing here?" Her eyes snapped open, and she gazed upwards at a pair of dark brown eyes staring at her. It was an elderly man in a white dentist's uniform,  
clenching his latex gloves so that they squeaked slightly as he looked down at her. It took her a minute, but then the memories flooded back and her hand dropped, still clutching the gun.

"Hello, Wonka Sr.," she muttered. Now, she thought, it couldn't get any worse.  
----

The glass elevator was hovering over the deserted house and Willy watched from above, Charlie as his side, squatted down and peering through the glass door, trying to get a better veiw. When they had seen the cops parked outside,  
they knew they were at the right place.

"So far they haven't brought anyone out," said Charlie, squinting a little.

"Knowing her, she was long gone before they came," muttered Willy. "She's quick like that."

They were silent, unable to hear what was going on outside. Watching had become quite boring, and soon the silence was beginning to drive them crazy.  
There was nothing but anticipation until-

"Don't wanna be an American idiot/ Don't want a nation under the new media..."

The music came from nowhere it seemed, making them both jump, but Charlie reached in his jacket pocket and pulled out his cell phone. "Whoops"  
he muttered, chuckling a little and flipped it open to look at the caller ID. His face changed to surprised, and he shrugged. "Huh," he muttered, and pressed the button, listening in.

"Hello? Yeah, it's me. Oh... okay. Yeah, I'll tell him. Uh... dunno. Hold on"  
he held the phone away from his face and turned to Willy, who was waiting impatiently. "How far away are we from your dad's house?" Now it was Willy's turn to look confused.

"About a mile I guess... why?"

"He says a mile," said Charlie back into the phone. "Yeah. Okay. Thanks. All right I will. Bye." He hung up and pocketed his phone. "That was your dad"  
he explained to Willy while looking around at the buttons. "Your girlfriend's at his house." He pressed a button and the elevator leaped into action.

"My father's house?" he asked, looking even more confused. What on earth would possess anyone to go there? Who wanted to go visit a dentist? "Hold on... how did he get your number?"

"I gave it to him a long time ago," said Charlie. "Just incase," he added with a shrug.

"Incase of what!"

"I never know with you," said Charlie. "And you should be thanking me. It came in handy."

"Thanks for going behind my back," muttered Willy, but Charlie knew the man wasn't really mad at him. His mind was elsewhere, as it usually was.  
Knowing this would probably come up again later, Charlie decided to let it go, and waited as they arrived at the dentist's house.  
----

Rose sat at the kitchen table, unable to even look at the man who was so intently staring her down. He had offered her tea, which she accepted greatfully, her whole body practically frozen. And then they just sat in silence, him staring at her, and she intent on counting all the floor tiles in the kitchen. Anything to avoid those eyes.

He had caught her off guard and completely vulnerable, and to make matters worse, she all ready had had the gun pointed to her head. He had seen her at her weakest, and she loathed looking weak in front of people. Probably why it had been years since anyone had ever seen her cry, save for her near break down when Willy picked her up at the airport.

"Did you call the cops?" she asked after a while, still not looking at Wonka.  
The elderly man glanced up at her, surprised to hear her say anything at all,  
having become aquainted to the silence for a while now.

"Pardon?" he asked.

"I saw you on the phone," she said dryly. "Call the cops?"

"Should I?" he asked. She looked up at him with dark eyes.

"I have a gun in my jacket and nothing to lose. Maybe you should."

"And why should that make me want to call?"

"How do you know I won't put a bullet through you and walk out of here with anything valuable and leave you to die?" She looked so cold as she said this, and almost convincing. Unfortunately she had the disadvantage of being known by him when she was little. He knew her too well.

"I can assure you, you won't find anything valuable here," he said just as cold. "And you won't kill me, Rose. You don't have it in you to do it."

"I've all ready killed one man," she muttered. "I wouldn't trust me if I were you." She pulled out the gun, but not in a swift threatening way, but rather to just reveal it, as if to prove she wasn't bluffing. She laid it on the table, never letting it go, but seeming careful to keep the small barrel pointed to him as if she were debating on it. Wilbur said nothing, but kept an eye on the gun, showing he didn't fully trust her.

"Am I to believe then that my impression of you was right from the start?" he asked. She didn't answer immediatly, but rather meditated on it. The more she thought, the more she fingered the gun and fidgeted, making him more nervous that she would fire on accident.

"That I'm trash?" she asked, glancing up at him. "That I'm always out to get into trouble, and that I don't care how much I hurt everyone else. How I made my mom's last years a living Hell, and left those kids with no father the day I killed their daddy?" She stopped, and bit her lip hard enough that it began to bleed. "That some things will never change?"

He watched her, knowing she was slowly coming apart inside. Her hard shell had just about had it, and soon she would break. "I guess I thought of you more as someone who didn't care about anything," he answered. "Part of why I told my son to stay away from you. But, like with many things, I can see he still doesn't obey me."

"He wouldn't be the great man he is if he'd listened to you," she said bitterly,  
and he nodded, knowing this was beyond true. "I didn't care when I was younger, sir. It was all just games back then." She shook her head, and he could see more seams coming unraveled inside her. She wouldn't hold much longer. "It's not a game anymore." Then she looked at him, and for a minute he saw inside of her as she slowly came undone for a moment. "I didn't mean to kill anyone," she whispered, her eyes seeming to change. Then she looked away and she turned cold again. Numb.

A drop of blood fell from her lower lip, which she had been chewing on for some time now, and she slowly lifted the gun and pocketed it again.  
----


	14. No Other Choice

Willy arrived at his father's house about five minutes after this conversation took place, Charlie following him nervously, and again found himself in the awkward environment of Willy and Wilbur, both struggling to meet eye to eye.

"Willy," Wilbur acknowledged.

"Father," Willy replied back, and then there was an awkward silence that made Charlie even more uncomfortable. After a minute, Willy glance around the room and turned to Wilbur. "Where's Rose? She didn't leave did she?"

"Sleeping upstairs," said Wilbur. "She was exhausted. I was actually rather hoping to speak with you about her..." He faked a cough and glanced at Charlie. "...alone." Charlie, taking the hint nodded and waved over his shoulder.

"Got too much homework anyway," he muttered, and left, waving over his shoulder. It wasn't until later that Willy realized he would have to find another way of transportation to get home. But that could wait.

Wilbur sat him down in the living room and explained to him the whole conversation he had had with her, and how he had found her outside his house with a gun pressed up against her head. Willy felt the blood drain from his face, and he leaned back, fear shooting through him. Suicide was only a few steps away, he had known that, but now that it was practically staring him in the face, it scared him. What would he do if she did it?

"Are you sure?" he asked after a few minutes. His father nodded slowly, and Willy sighed, closing his eyes and burrying his face in his hands. Now what?

"I think she's realized she's hit rock bottom," said Wilbur after a few minutes of painful silence.

"She's known that for a while," said Willy, shaking his head. "I never thought she would actually..." He groaned and stroked his head. All this at once was giving him a headache, and he wondered what he should do now.

"How long have you known she was here?" asked his father.

"I figured it out yesterday. She was here before for a while, but that was for something else. Then she just disappeared."

"I'm surprised the cops haven't dropped by here yet looking for her."

"They haven't?" asked Willy.

"Not yet." He shifted uncomfortably and looked Willy in the eye. "I don't want to get into trouble with you two. I'll have to report her when they come"  
Willy felt slightly angered by this statement, but he knew it was only fair. His father shouldn't have been pushed into this to begin with.

"Can you give us an hour's headstart?" asked Willy softly, tears forming in his eyes.  
----

The phone rang at the factory and Charlie answered, having a good idea of who it was. "Wonka industries," he said into the phone.

"Hi, Charlie," came Willy's voice.

"Hey, where are you?"

"I'm about to get going here in a few minutes, actually," said Willy. He took in a deep breath and Charlie braced himself. That wasn't a good sound. "I just... I just want you to know that... I'm proud of you. You've become a great heir, and I know you'll be able to take over the factory just fine now."

"Willy...?"

"I want you to listen to me now, and you can't argue with me because my mind's made up." Willy's tone was firm and almost adult like! That was never a normal thing. "I'm going to disappear with her for a while, Charlie, and I probably won't be coming back for a long time... if ever."

"Willy!"

"I won't tell you where because I have no idea yet. I want you to take over for me and run the factory just like I would. The oompa-loompas all ready know to take orders from you. They'll work with you fine. I know you can do it,  
Charlie."

"Willy, dont-"

"Don't argue! It's what has to happen. I've been training you for when I leave.  
Now's the time, Charlie."

"Don't make me do this, Willy!"

"Don't worry, you'll be just fine, my dear boy. Promise me you'll do it. I'm counting on you." There was a long pause as this all registered fully, and Charlie, taking in a deep breath nodded and sighed.

"Okay..." he muttered. He felt sick to his stomach, and had to brace himself against a wall. "I'll do it."

"Atta boy," said Willy softly. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

"I know," said Charlie. "You always are."

"All right... bye."

"Willy, wait!" There was a pause and then the boy said softly. "I love you"  
There was an even longer pause and for a moment he was afraid the chocolatier had hung up on him.

"I love you too, my dear boy," he said softly. And with that he hung up.

-  
(A/N: That was NOT a slash scene so don't you dare take it that way)  
----


	15. Say It Ain't So

Weezer was playing softly through her headphones as she slowly woke. Her eyes slitted slightly and she looked around the room, her vision still slightly blurry from sleep. It was starting to darken, so she assumed it was nearly sunset. She sat up slowly, rubbing her face and pulled her headphones down around her neck, but turned up the volume so she could still hear it faintly as she woke up. It had been a while since she had slept like that. From the looks of it, she hadn't moved around much either. She probably had woken up in the same position she had fallen asleep in.

Her body was slightly achey, so she clipped her diskman on the edge of her dirty jeans, and walked around the room a little, shaking off the remainder of weariness and stretched out her soar limbs. When she stretched her arms up,  
her shirt rose up high enough that she could see her ribcage, and she froze,  
standing across from a mirror. She hadn't always been that bony.

Gently, she pulled off her shirt and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her bra straps held on to bony shoulders, and there was dirt on her that she hadn't noticed before. She was fairly scuffed up, and every rib was clearly visible.  
Someone could easily pass her off as an anorexic woman, and she wondered how badly her vertibre showed on her back.

She became so engulfed in her image, that she didn't notice the door opening behind her. Willy poked his head in and gasped suddenly, making her jump and grab her shirt to cover herself quickly. She cursed loudly, and he turned bright red, spinning away so not to watch her as she pulled her shirt back on.  
"Sorry..." he muttered, but she shook her head.

"It's okay," she muttered, catching her breath, and she turned around to see his back was still facing her. "Oh for the love of chocolate, Willy, it's just my bra!"

"Yeah... right..." he said, turning around, his cheeks still slightly pink and his eyes glowing in embarrasment. "Should have knocked..."

At once Rose seemed to realize how innocent and naive he still was. Surely,  
she had thought, someone as rich and famous as him had seen a lot more than just a bra in his time, but he genuinely was embarrased from seeing that, and something inside her began to hurt. He noticed the look on her face and stared at her curiously.

"What?"

She shook her head. "N-nothing," she stammered and turned around, making a poor attempt at avoiding him by making the bed. She could feel his eyes boring into her and it made her uneasy. "Has your father called the cops yet?"

"No," said Willy.

"I thought he would by now," she muttered, trying to sound bitter.

"He promised he'd give us a half hour." She stopped dead and turned around.

"Us?" she asked and turned.

"Yeah. Us."

"No," she said immediatly, shaking her head. "Not in a million years,  
William Wonka!"

"What?"

"You're not coming with me," she said, heading for the door. "This is nothing you want to get involved with. Besides, it's safer this way. It's too dangerous out there and you'll get yourself killed."

"If you can do it-"

"Don't even try to finish that sentence," she warned him. "You have no idea what it's like out there! You've got a family that loves you, a home to go home too, and a little boy who looks up to you like you were his father. I'm not gonna let you throw that away."

"I've made up my mind," he snapped. "I'm an adult now too, Rose. I can think for myself."

"You're stupid then!" she shouted. "You have no idea what it's like-"

"To not have anywhere to go but the streets? Try me," he said darkly. "I've done it before too."

"You went to your grandparents."

"A month later!"

"Still not the same, Willy. No!"

"I'm the only one who knows places no one's ever heard of. I can get us so far away they'll never find us, not even after we're dead." She rolled her eyes,  
certain he was exaggerating. But the look on his face was so serious and so firm, for a moment she almost believed him. "Trust me," he said softly,  
grabbing her by the arm. She looked at him and knew there was no way she'd be able to change his mind. She hung her head in surrender and he let her go.  
"We've got an hour," he repeated, and left her there in the room. From her headphones, Rose could hear the faint music coming through.

"Say it ain't so/ My love is a heartbreaker..."  
----

Willy and Rose stepped out of the house, and that was when it finally hit him that the elevator was back at the factory. He had completely forgotten! He was so upset he almost swore when he heard Rose sigh and reach in her pocket. "Rule one, Willy," she said softly. "If you're gonna live with a theif,  
start thinking like one." There was a small clinking of keys, and she pulled out his father's car keys from her pocket. His eyes bulged, but she dragged him over to the car before he could protest. Before he knew it, they were driving away.  
----

Three hours went by as they drove, seeming to go in whatever direction without really giving it much thought until they weren't anywhere that looked familiar. Willy gave her directions as she drove, but more than once she wondered if he was just saying things at random. A few more hours past until she finally confessed to being hungry and they pulled over at a fast food place. She left while he waited in the car, watching carefully.

Rose stepped up to the counter and ordered, getting the first thing she saw on the menu. There was no time for debate, and food was food at this point. But the entire time she couldn't help but notice the man at the payphone occasionally glancing over at her. While she waited for her order she got a chance to really look around. A man reading his newspaper occasionally looked up as well, and another one on his cell phone seemed to keep an eye on her. That was when she realized what was going on.

A man stepped up to her, starting to order and looked at her. "On the road"  
he asked. She looked at him, not fully turning her face to him, and nodded slowly.

"Y-yeah..." she muttered. "Going to visit a relative."

"Looked like it," he said, offering a friendly smile. "Me too. Off to the airport to go to America."

"That's nice," she said, still not fully looking at him.

"Where abouts are you headed?" Her eyes stared at him for a minute and though she couldn't see them, she knew all the men who had been glancing at her were watching her intently now.

"Actually it's not far from here..." she grabbed her bag and headed towards the girl's bathroom, pulling out coins for the payphone and dialing. Behind her, the men got up, talking into their collars or sleeve cuffs, and started to close in on her. Rose just stood where she was, looking cool and collected and waited while her heart hammered in her chest.  
----

Willy glanced up when he heard ringing and spotted Rose's cell phone on the driver's seat. He wondered if he should answer it, wondering who it could be or if it was a trap. Cautiously, he grabbed it and answered. "Hello?"

"Willy," hissed Rose's voice. "Pull around to the back of the building and get ready to take off."

"Why?" he asked.

"Just do it!" she snapped. She'd always be the leader in their little schemes,  
and he found it easier to just do what she said rather than argue about it. She hung up and he moved over to the driver's seat, reving up the car and pulling out of the parking space.  
----

Rose stayed perfectly still for a moment, then, without warning, slammed the phone down on the reciever and bolted into the bathroom. There was a shout behind her and she burst into the bathroom, running for the window. As she looked out, she saw Willy pulling around, and she waved her arms frantically to flag him down.

Behind her the bathroom door slammed open and she had no choice but to drop. The fall was a little further that she would have liked, and she landed on her face, scraping her knees and elbows. Willy had to slam on the brakes to avoid running over her, and she jumped up, running to the car and shouting for him to move over to the passenger seat. He obeyed quickly and she jumped in the car, slamming on the eccelerator and speeding out of there as fast as she could.

Neither of them said a word to each other until they were at least a mile away, and then she looked at him, breathing a sigh of relief. "You can still back out of this..."

"Don't even try it," he said, not looking at her. "What happened?"

"Cops," she muttered. "There was four or five of them in there. We got out of there on sheer luck." He nodded, looking very nervous, almost as much as he had back when he was younger and had assisted in the ball caper so many years ago.

"You didn't hurt yourself, did you?" he asked, his voice trying to replace fear with concern.

"I'm fine," she said, but in truth she was sore. She'd worry about that later.

"We're going to need to switch cars soon," she muttered. "They probly saw the car as we pulled away."

"We can't just buy a car right on the spot so quickly," said Willy, looking at her. "I didn't bring that kind of money with me."

"I said nothing about buying one, idiot," she growled. He groaned, rolling his eyes, but knew there was no choice. He was beginning to really understand now that if they got caught he'd be going to jail right along with her.

That night, when they were in a city that she had never even heard of, and judging by the underdevelopement neither had anyone else, they stopped at a hotel and rented out a room. As they pulled in to the parking lot, both of them exhausted, Rose scanned the cars carefully as they walked to the door. There was a car parked there, the exact same color and style as theirs, and an idea started to form in her mind.

"One second," she said softly to Willy and she walked over to the car. He looked at her curiously and she stared at the car. "Does your dad's car have an alarm on it?"

"I don't know," he answered, still not sure of what she was doing.

"One way to find out," she muttered to herself, and gently slapped it with her hand. At once there came the loud screaching of sirens and the lights blinking, and she backed away, smiling inwardly. She walked over to Willy and said, "Come on," quietly to him. They walked into the hotel, leaving the car alarm to screech and holler loudly.

Rose looked around the lobby at the random people there and called out,  
"Does anyone own a white 1970 Buik? The alarm's going off."

An elderly man jumped to his feet, muttering, "Not again," under his breath and he scuttled outside. Willy looked at her as she studied the man's face,  
half wanting to ask her what she was doing, but he let her be, knowing he'd find out later.

When the man returned, Willy had the key to the room, and started to head off to it. "Rose?" he asked when he saw she wasn't following.

"Go on ahead," she said to him. "I'll be back in a while. What room?"

"270," he said. "What are you-"

"Just go. Trust me."

He shrugged and walked off, secretly not trusting her with every fiber of his being.


	16. Free Ride

Rose didn't return until it was nearly three thirty in the morning, and he woke when he heard the door open. She came in, her hair pulled back in a ratty ponytail, and she was wiping something off her hands on a wash cloth. He reached over flipping on the lights and saw it was black paint.

"Where have you been?" he asked, yawning grumpily.

"Around," she muttered. "Go back to sleep." He stared at her, but she went into the bathroom, washing herself off, and then to bed, falling asleep before he could further question her.

She woke about four hours later to the sound of Willy looking through a rustling grocery bag. She yawned, now knowing how he felt to have been woken from her not too long ago and groaned, "What are you doing?"

He glanced up at her, not knowing she was awake, and pulled something out of the bag. "There's a store next to the hotel," he said. "I got some stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" she asked, propping herself up on her elbow.

"Bandaids," he said, showing her the box. "You know... incase we have to make another window escape." Without asking permission, he took hold of her hands and pulled them towards him so that her arms were fully extended, and rolled up her sleeves gently. The scuff marks were below her elbows, and he tended to them first, rubbing on some Neosporin and placing bandaids over them. Rose hadn't used bandaids in years, never having the time to put them on, let alone buy them. It sort of reminded her of when her mother used to have to do this to her. Then the time after the fight when Willy had bandaged her up as well.

Now that she thought of it, her life had basically been one big bandage story, mostly from being reckless. And even now, plenty of years down the road, nothing had changed. "Willy?" she asked, once he was done. "How did you figure it out?"

He glanced up at her, for a moment thinking she was talking about the band-aids. "What?"

"Where I was. How'd you figure it out?"

"Oh," he muttered. How had he figured it out? It had just come to him with one of the lines, but he still wasn't sure how. "I watched the old tape, you know... from the play."

"You still have that thing?" she cried, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah," he said, chuckling. "Charlie and I, we just watched that scene, Solla Sollew... and I just knew... I dunno how." He sighed, knowing he was making no sense (which was never something new) but hoped she'd understand. "It was that line, I guess. 'I'll be home with you,'..."

"Oh," she muttered, and sighed. "Figured I'd go home then, didn't you?"

"Something like that," he nodded. He threw out the remaining wrappers and tucked the small bandaid box in his pocket. "Well... no point in staying here any longer," he said softly, then turned to her.

"Okay," she muttered and got up. As they headed out the door, she looked at him and smiled. "I got us a new ride"  
----

"Okay, explain to me how you did this... now!" demanded Willy. When they had arrived into the parking lot, their once white buik was now black, but as far as he could tell, other than the color, it was the same car.

"It's not brain surgery, Will," she muttered as she drove, waiting at a red light. "That old bloak had the same car you did so I did a swap, and changed to color for good measure. Only now, he's driving off in a car with our fingerprints in it and won't know it until he's pulled over, which'll give us mor time to get away while the cops try to find out if he had anything to do with this.

"It's not going to work," said Willy. "He'll know he has the wrong car. And the license plates! He'll notice those."

"No, he still has his. Will, relax I kept an eye out for detail, even making sure the radio was set to the station he had been listening to when he pulled in. He won't know the difference."

"Something's going to go wrong," muttered Willy, shaking his head.

"You're just paranoid. Switch to decaff and in an hour you'll be just fine-" But she was cut off when a siren screached loudly behind them. Willy closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing loudly. Rose's heart pounded violently as she looked up into the rear veiw mirror. For a moment she saw the flashing lights, but then saw a white buik pull over to the side and the cop car pull over with it.

"See?" she said, sighing loudly. "We're safe."

"For now," breathed Willy, glancing out the side to get a better look. He caught a breif glimpse of the old man's worried face as the cop requested he step out and couldn't help feeling guilty. Then something came to mind and he looked at her briefly. "What makes you think they'll think to check the car for prints?"

"I left a necklace of mine in there," she answered. "A locket with my picture in it, laying wide open on the backseat. They're bound to see it." She was quiet for a moment, then her hands shifted slightly on the wheel. "My... dad gave it to me."

He didn't know what to say, but knew he had to say something. It was one of those moments when he wished girls weren't so complicated, his mind scrambling for something to say. "Oh," was all that came out. Hopefully it would be enough.

"It's okay," she groaned. "Never want to see that thing again," she spat, then turned her attention to the road, not speaking to him again for a while.  
----


	17. Cannonball

(I'm begging everyone to download this song and listen to it. It's called 'Cannonball' by Damien Rice and I think of this fic everytime I hear it. It's the most beautiful song and it's hit my favorite's list. Just listen to it if you haven't heard it all ready. Thanks!)

"There's still a little bit of your taste in my mouth/ There's still a little bit of you laced with my doubt/ It's still a little hard to say what's going on..."

It was late at night, and Willy had taken over the wheel a few hours ago. Though she would never admit it through words, he knew Rose was exhausted and practically forced her to get into the passenger seat to rest while he drove. She had been staring out the window for a while, watching the houses and stores go by with the traffic lights until her eyes had grown too heavy and she fell asleep.

Willy glanced at her occasionally... as if making sure she was all right. She looked peaceful for once, which made him feel slightly better. But he felt pain each time he looked as well. She didn't look the same, and had changed so much from the girl he had grown up with. He wondered if he would ever see that side of her again.

"There's still a little bit of your ghost, your weakness/ There's still a little bit of your face I haven't kissed/ You step a little closer each day that I can't say what's going on..."

She shifted and he turned his glance away from her, afraid that he'd wake her just from looking at her. He waited until he was certain there was no movement, and glanced at her again. The peaceful look had left her face, and now she looked sad. That look was one he had endured the last few days, and had struggled to accept it was really her. He guessed she'd always been hurting inside when they were kids, maybe he had never noticed.

A traffic light passed and he saw a small trail sparkle away from her eye lashes. He sucked in his breath in shock, and felt his heart break.

"Stones taught me to fly/ Love taught me to lie/ Life taught me to die/ So it's not hard to fall when you float like a cannonball..."

She could feel his eyes on her and when that tear fell from her eyes, she had felt so naked, completely ripped open and exposed for him to see. There was no point in pretending to be asleep anymore, and she opened her eyes, brushing the tear away hastily. His eyes were no longer on her and she sat up, hugging herself. She knew he wanted to do something to help her, but couldn't think of anything.

"Do you need anything?" he asked at length.

"I need to use the bathroom," she lied. So they pulled over at a trucker's rest stop and she got out. But he knew better and chased after her, grabbing her by the arms.

"There's still a little bit of your song in my ear/ There's still a little bit of your words I long to hear/ You step a little closer to me, so close that I can't see what's going on..."

At first she tried to tear free, but he was too strong. Then she tried to fight him, attempting to shove him, hit him, bite him, but he held her tight until her strength was spent and she deflated like a balloon, collapsing into his chest in tears. She sobbed, and a few truck drivers glanced at them curiously, but Willy wrapped his arms around her, taking her with him around to the back of the building by a tree and held her as she wept, giving in at last and letting it all come out.

"Stones taught me to fly/ Love taught me to lie/ Life taught me to die/ So it's not hard to fall when you float like a cannonball..."

His gloved hands ran up and down her back, tangling into her hair, and her arms weakly found their way around him. His chin rested on her head and he whispered useless words of comfort to her, though they had little if any effect on her. After a while her crying stopped almost suddenly, and once again, he painfully watched as her shell became hard again, locking in what was still inside. She looked up at him, brushing the tears from her eyes, then walked back to the car silently. He sighed, closing his eyes, and wondered if he'd ever be able to really break her.

"Stones taught me to fly/ Love taught me to cry/ So come on courage, teach me to be shy/ It's not hard to fall/ And I don't want to scare her/ It's not hard to fall/ And I don't want to lose/ It's not hard to grow when you know that you just don't know..."

That night they ended up having to pull over on the side of the road to sleep, not having any luck with finding a hotel, and neither of them spoke again that night.  
----

"Rose, wake up!" hissed a voice. Her eyes snapped open and she looked up to Willy who was shaking her with a wild look of panic in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" she yawned, and started to sit up when a piercing siren made her jump and her nerves go wild.

"Get out of the car!" hollered an angry voice. "Get out of the car!" Red and blue lights were shining through the windows. And perhaps it can be forgiven this once, but Willy blurted out a word that, until that day, Rose would have been the only one out of both of them who would have been more likely to say it.  
-  
(A/N: So sorry to have to do this to ya folks! First I don't update in a while, then I leave you with this cliffhanger. Oh well, don't hate me. R&R!)


	18. The Tough Call

"Willy, wake up! Willy, come on!"

He lay so still, his breathing ragged, and blood was flowing from his arm.  
Rose bit her lip, not letting herself cry as she gently pulled off his jacket and shirt, a difficult task to do since he was laying down and wouldn't come concious.

When they had woken to the sounds of sirens and flashing police lights, she had done the only thing she had become very good at over the years. She ran.  
Her hand quickly turned the key in the ignition and she stepped on the gas,  
sending them speeding down the road, but not before the cops had opened fire. They drove as fast as possible for a while, quickly changing streets and driving on the opposite side of the road a few times. In the end, she had no idea how, but she had managed to outrun them. It was only seconds later when she saw Willy flop forward unconcious, and saw the blood splatted on the windsheild.

He had been shot in the arm, and she screamed when she realized it. This wasn't supposed to happen! She drove them out of there and stopped at the first house she saw which was practically in the middle of nowhere. They pulled over and she brought him out with her, taking her gun with her, and pounded on the door, pointing her gun at the door, ready to threaten whoever would open it.

A middle-aged man answered it, and looked horrified when he saw the gun.  
Rose's mind was completely frazzled by that point and she practically screamed at the man to let them in and show her where Willy could lay. He did so, almost seeming to calm down immediatly as he lead them to a room in the back. "Don't call the cops," said Rose in a warning tone as she started to shut the door behind herself and Willy, keeping him out. "Or I'll shoot you."

"Does he need an ambulence?" asked the man.

"Do not call an ambulence or anyone!" snapped Rose and she closed the door behind her. Willy was barely concious when he was laid on the bed, and Rose looked at the wound. "Can you hear me?" she asked him. He gave a soft moan, and she took that as a yes. "Just hold on. I'm gonna take it out..."

"Wh... what?" asked Willy, seeming to be coming to life rapidly now.

"The bullet. I'm taking it out-"

"No!" he snapped, jerking away from her, but stopping when the pain in his arm flared up.

"Don't move!" she half shouted at him as he cried in pain. "Idiot! You'll make it worse!" She turned around and examined the dresser. No tweezers or anything she could use. She walked to the door and looked out to the man who, to her utter shock, had gone into the kitchen to fix himself a sandwich.  
Either he wasn't appreciating the severity of the situation, or he had completely forgotten that just two minutes ago, two strangers had barged into his house, one with a gun and the other bleeding all over the place. "You"  
she called. "You got any tweezers?"

"In the bathroom," said the man, looking up. "Why?"

"Where's the bathroom?" she asked, stepping out and into the hall.

"Second door to the right. What's going on?" She didn't answer and walked to the bathroom, tearing through the cabinets until she found them, then walked back into the room, pursued by the man, who was beginning to annoy her.

"He's just been shot," she said finally. "I gotta take the bullet out."

"Do you know how?"

"No better time to learn."

"I'm a doctor," said the man, but she didn't listen as she rolled up her sleeves and reached over to grab Willy's arm. But he shifted away from her, flinching in pain as he moved and shook his head. "I'm a doctor," repeated the man. "I can do it."

"Let him do it," pleaded Willy.

"I don't trust him," said Rose, pretending like he wasn't even in the room.  
"Hold still!"

"You'll probably cause more damage," said the man. "Please, let me do it."

"Please," begged Willy.

"You don't trust me?" she snapped at him.

"I've never trusted you!" he half shouted at her. She froze and stared at him,  
her eyes reflecting anger. "If it weren't for you, this wouldn't have happened"  
And like that the words were out, the damage was done, and there was no taking it back now. She stared at him silently for a moment, then turned on her heel, thrusting the tweezers into the man's hand and left the room without another word.

"Rose-" Willy started to say, but the door slammed shut behind her and there was no more to be said between the two of them.  
----

Out in the hall, Rose held her head in her hands and listened as Willy gave shouts of pain as the bullet was removed. When it was done he fell asleep and slept through the rest of the day.

The next morning, after having thought about things, Rose decided to talk to Willy, hoping to convince him to go home. The reminder of him being shot had been driving her mad to the point where she wasn't sleeping, but stayed up the whole night, staring at the walls in the room she'd been offered. Willy was still asleep when she finally headed to his room, but she had to wake him. He'd slept long enough.

He was very pale when she saw him... more pale than usual. There were dark circles around his eyes, and sweat on his face. She knelt down beside him,  
looked at him uncertain, then spoke softly. "Hey... Will?" He stirred softly and looked at her. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked as if he were still half asleep. She began to wonder if he was sick.

"Will, how are you doing?" she asked, all ready forgetting why she had come here.

It took him a minute to answer, but he finally said, "Not so hot." He closed his eyes, turned his face towards the ceiling, and gave her a ghostly smile.  
"You look how I feel."

"Can I get you anything?" she asked.

"No..." he sighed lazily. She reached out and touched his forehead gently. He was burning up.

"You've got a fever..." she muttered. "I'll get the doc." She started to get up to leave, but he grabbed her by the sleeve.

"No," he stuttered. "Don't go."

"I'll be right back, I swear," she said, giving him a strange look for his sudden reaction. He had a very firm grip on her sleeve, but she coaxed his hand to loosen it, and managed to get the man. When he got there, she didn't leave Willy's side, holding his hand through the whole thing until the man looked up at them, shaking his head.

"He's got an infection. He's got to go to a hospital."

"No," said Willy.

"Sir, if you don't go, you could die."

"You're a doctor, aren't you?" demanded Rose. "Can't you help him?"

"I don't have the stuff to help him."

"Then get it!"

"It's not that simple," he replied cooly. "I know you're trying to protect each other, but you're friend here will die if he doesn't get the help he needs." Rose looked at him as if she was understanding and about to give the okay when Willy shook his head.

"You're... you're not taking me to a hospital," he stuttered. "I'll wait it out."

"That's not a smart choice, sir," said the man.

"There's got to be something you can do," said Rose.

"The only thing I could do is cut it off, but I won't. That's just going too far"  
Rose was in agreement, and looked at Willy.

"If there's no other way-"

"No!" snapped Willy.

"I'd listen to your friend, sir," said the man.

"No," repeated Willy. "I'll wait it out."

Rose had tears in her eyes of frustration and stormed out of the room, kicking the door on her way out. Willy closed his eyes, a single tear falling down his face, and fell into a fitful sleep within minutes. Rose cried alone in her room for a few minutes until the man came to join her and offered her a cup of tea. "What are you going to do about it?" he asked.

"What can I do about it? His mind's made up. I can't force him," she muttered, taking a swig of tea, hoping to get some comfort out of it.

"You can't?" asked the man, eyeing her curiously.

"He got that bullet in his arm because of me. I've dragged him into so much crap all ready. I can't do it again."

"But do you really think this is what's best?" asked the man. Rose sighed and ran her hand along her forehead.

"I don't know. Besides, he might get arrested for helping me if he does go to the hospital. Then what? It'd make things worse. I'd go to jail too, fair and square, but he... he doesn't deserve to be there."

"But he could die here," said the man pointedly, and Rose nodded.

"Is there a chance that it could pass?" she asked.

"There is, but it's slim. In my medical opinion I wouldn't even risk it,  
especially in a bullet wound that can run deep. The damage could be extensive." Rose sighed. Time for some quick thinking yet again... something to help save his life. She looked up at the man.

"I need you to do something for me then," she said softly, tears in her eyes.  
----

Rose knelt down next to Willy and took his hand. It was warm and clamy,  
and his eyes slitted to look at her. "I need you to do me something," she whispered softly. "There's a boy back at that factory who looks up to you and needs you."

"Charlie..." whispered Willy, and Rose shushed him.

"Yeah, Charlie. When you see him again, take good care of him, okay? Don't let him become like me." Willy looked at her, his eyes only halfway open.

"Rose..."

She stood up, leaned over him, kissing his forehead softly, whispered a soft,  
"I love you," and walked off. When she stepped into the kitchen, the man handed her a set of car keys. "There's a Crysler in the garage that I never use.  
Take it. I'll make sure your friend gets to the hospital all right."

"And will you...?"

"Yes, I will."

"Thankyou," she whispered, taking the keys and headed for the door.

"Ma'am!" She stopped and turned to him. "You forgot this," he said, handing her her gun. She looked at it and shook her head.

"Keep it," she said, and left.  
----

Charlie was flipping channels at the factory when a breaking news story came on. "The man who was seen with FBI's most wanted, Rose Parker, was taken to the hospital earlier this evening, having suffered a bullet to the arm"  
announced the anchorwoman. "The man was ID'ed as none other that the famous chocolatier, Willy Wonka, who was unconcious and unavailable for questioning. However, there was a whitness. A former doctor by the name of Jacob Krodger, who had made the 911 call, says that Rose had been in fact holding Willy Wonka hostage when she shot him while making an attempt at asking for help." Charlie fell back on the sofa, his jaw dropping, and a certain anger and hatred for Rose growing inside of him. Jacob Krodger appeared on the screen shaking his head.

"She was just... out of her mind. Like she had just reached the edge of sanity.  
After she shot him, she ran." Charlie cursed under his breath, and shook his head, getting to his feet and grabbing his coat.

The anchorwoman came on one last time. "Police have said that there has been no sign of Rose, and if anyone has seen her to please contact the local police immediatly. Willy Wonka is said to be in stable condition and should be going home to his factory soon." Charlie shut off the TV, and without telling his parents, or anyone nearby for that matter, he went strait to the glass elevator and left for the hospital.  
----

From inside her hotel room, Rose shut off the TV, knowing the manager downstairs must be calling the cops by now, and headed for the window,  
tears falling down her face. The doc had kept his word, she thought. He had done it. Willy would hate her for it when he woke up, but at least this way he was safe. And she couldn't imagine the relief that boy would feel once he was safe at home. Deciding she'd done the right thing, the slipped off to the parking lot, hotwired the first car she could find and took off, the tears still falling late into the night.  
----

Willy wouldn't talk about it. He just wouldn't budge. Charlie asked question after question about what had happened, and Willy's only answer was, "You heard the story, 'kay?" Charlie hated Rose more and more by the moment,  
and wanted nothing more but to see her behind bars. How could she have done this! After everything he had done to help her too!

Willy's father even dropped in later that day, wearing a look of concern that Charlie had never seen before. He knew that Wilbur did love his son, it just never really showed much. Willy requested to talk to him alone, making Charlie even more angry, but he left anyway, taking a seat angrily in the hallway, waiting impatiently.

It was almost an hour before Wilbur came back out again, and when he did,  
he turned to Charlie, offering him his hand. "Come with me," he said softly.  
"We have a job to do"  
----

"What do you mean we're helping her!" cried Charlie. "Didn't you see what she did to him?"

"She didn't do it," he said softly. Having no car, he had taken a cab, and was now relying on Charlie to opperate the elevator, which was not the most pleasant ride for an elderly man like himself.

"What?"

"It's all a cover up," he explained. "She made up the story so that he wouldn't go to jail. She even went as far as to have a bullet that had been removed get replaced so that the nurses would buy the story still." Charlie flinched, not fully understanding what the old bat was talking about, but tried to understand why he wasn't supposed to be angry with Rose.

"So she never shot him?"

"No."

"And she's innocent?"

"Oh, she's still guilty. She's always been guilty. But apparently my son believes strongly in trying to save her life, and said that if we didn't do it, he'd climb out of that hospital bed and do it himself. And I'm sad to say that I don't doubt that for a minute."

"What exactly did he have in mind?"

"He wants us to find her and then bring her back to the factory."

"And then?"

"That's all he's got right now."

"Oh. Great."

Charlie watched the scenery fly by, until they came to a stop over a house,  
and slowly lower down to the ground. "Where are we?" asked Charlie.

"This is Jacob Krodger's house," said Wilbur. "He's the only one who knows where she went."

They knocked on the door, and it was only then that it occured to Charlie that it was three in the morning. Still, the door opened, and Jacob looked down at them, slightly bleary eyed, and yawned but did not look at all disgruntled.  
This had to have been the most mild mannered person that they'd ever met.

"Yes?" he asked.  
----

"I will be the answer/ At the end of the night/ I will be there for you/ While you take the time/ In the burning of uncertaintity/ I will be your solid ground/  
I will hold the balance/ If you cannot bend/ If it takes my whole life/ I won't break, I won't bend/ It will all be worth it/ Worth it in the end/ Cuz I can only tell you what I know/ That I need you in my life/ And if the stars have all gone out/ You'd still be burning so bright..."

They were sitting inside of Jacob's house, talking and sipping on tea while trying to convince the man to tell them where Rose had gone. Whatever she had said had stuck well because he refused to budge. Charlie pressed and pressed, trying to explain the situation between her and Willy Wonka, but it simply wouldn't work.

Somewhere between negotiating and arguing, his cell phone broke out ringing, and he answered it, leaving the room quietly. It was Willy on the other end and he sounded a mixture of weariness and exhaustion. "Charlie"  
he panted. Charlie's eyes widened and he answered.

"Willy, what's wrong?"

"You have to get to Rose now!"

"We're working on it," said Charlie, glancing back at the old man.

"No, you don't understand. You need to find her now!"

"Why? What's going on? Is she in trouble?"

"I think she might be." He sounded desparate, and -if Charlie didn't know better- on the edge of tears.

"What do you mean? Why? You've heard from her?"

"No," he answered. "I've got a feeling. A very very bad one."

Willy's 'feelings' were something they rarely spoke about. They'd always start off low, but gradually build up until he was a complete stress machine. The last time he had had one, that Charlie remembered, they turned on the news later that day when the feeling had intensified only to hear about the bus bombings in London. Ever since then, Charlie hadn't taken these feelings for granted.

"About Rose?" asked Charlie.

"Yes. You've got to find her!"

"We're trying but the old man won't budge!" There was a pause then a sigh.

"Charlie, I have a number you can call"  
---- 


	19. No More Running

Rose was sitting at a cafe in the middle of nowhere, sipping on coffee and throwing herself her own personal pitty party. Everyone around her minded their own business so she wasn't afraid to let the tears fall. No one would notice, or if they did they wouldn't care. She rested her head on her hand,  
fingers tangled in her hair, the other hand clinging on to her coffee cup,  
staring into it at a faint reflection of the ceiling lights.

The bell for the door rang, as it was opened and closed, and she heard someone take a seat at the table behing her. He ordered coffee and a bagel (not that she was listening in or anything), and a few minutes later turned to her. "S'cuse me," he grunted. "Can I borrow your sugar?" Without giving it much thought she reached over for her sugar, but as she did so she caught a glimpse of the reflection from the napkin dispenser and saw clearly a sugar shaker on his table. Immediatly her guard was up, and she cautiously handed it to him, but did not turn around to face him.

"Here," she said, jerking her hand away as fast as possible.

"A little tense are we?" the stranger commented. Rose didn't know what to do. Normally she had a plan for a quick exscape, but over the last few months her mind had been in so many places at once that her quick thinking was wearing thin. A lot of her mind was still focused on Willy. She still wondered if he was all right. "Here's your sugar back," he said. She turned to take it, but under the sports jacket noticed the small glint of a silver badge.

"Keep it," she replied, and stood up, heading for the bathroom.  
----

The door to the hospital room opened, and Willy was slightly relieved to see Mrs. Bucket there, although he hadn't really been expecting her. "I heard all about what happened and brought you some home made muffins," she said with a smile. Willy was able to let himself relax just for a moment, and smiled back, painfully pulling himself up into a sitting position. The painkillers were dying all ready.

"Did Charlie tell you anything?" he asked, as the basket was placed in his lap and Mrs. Bucket sat down into the bedside chair.

"He did," she said softly. "He told me a little about her... that you've been protecting her." There was a very visible frown on her face, and Willy sighed.

"Not exactly being the best influence on the boy... am I?"

"Mr. Wonka, if there's one thing I've learned over the years of living in your factory, it's that you usually know what you're doing. And, even though it may not seem right at first, in the end you seem to know what's best... even though sometimes it's a little worrying."

"To put it lightly," he said with a weak chuckle.

"Do you know where she is now?"

"No," he sighed, shaking his head. "It's funny... I didn't even want to be in here. I was willing to die from infection rather than to end up in here and possibly give her away." Though his eyes were tired, he looked slightly stunned at his own reasoning. "It was like... I was willing to die to protect her. Is that a bad thing?"

Mrs. Bucket looked as though she weren't sure how to answer that one, but as she thought it over, she managed to shake her head. "I wouldn't necessarily call it a bad thing... not in this case at least. I know that I would die for my husband because I love him. But-"

"Say that again," he cut in suddenly. She looked at him funny, then shrugged.

"I said, I would die for my husband because I l-"

"Love... him..." he repeated softly. "We do things like this... for the people we love because we love them... right?"

"Well... I'm not saying that you're in love with her, that's not what I'm saying at all, dear..."

"Well of course not! Don't be ridiculous. I didn't mean 'in love'. I meant just.  
love. Wow..."

"What?" He stared at the far wall and gave a ghostly smile.

"It's funny... other that my father, I don't think I've ever really loved someone... besides your son and his family. Love... it's just one of those things I never really think about. It's just... weird." She smiled and patted his hand.

"There's nothing wrong with loving someone. You just need to be careful what you're willing to do because of that love. Like let yourself die from infection." He snickered, and shook his head. The moment of peace wore of fairly quickly after that, however, and his mind soon wandered back to Rose.

"I hope she's okay..." he muttered. "If anything would happen to her I'd.  
well, I don't know what I'd do."

"Don't worry, dear," she said softly. "I'm sure Charlie will take care of it. He was, after all, taught by you." Willy gave a smile, but it wasn't very reassuring, and even with those words of encouragement, he still couldn't help but worry for her.  
----

"It's still ringing," said Charlie impatiently. Wonka Sr. stood hovering over him, seeming almost as anxious as he was to see if this would work. "Rose!  
Rose, where are... What? Uh... somewhere between Elmwood and Crossetroad. Why? I don't know where that is. Cops? How many cops? Have they seen you? Hold on! We're on our way." He hung up and pocketed his phone. "Apparently she ran into some old friends," he muttered. "Where's the McDonalds on Lincoln Avenue?" Wilbur gave Charlie a weird look and the boy felt like he could have slapped himself for that question. "All right, let's go"  
----

Rose stood outside, near an alley right next to the McDonalds, hugging herself and keeping a sharp eye out for cops. She had made another bathroom escape, only this time she had been able to pull it off before the cop inside could catch on to what she was doing. The idiot was probably still waiting outside the bathroom door for her.

It began to rain, and she shivered, all ready half frozen. Where were they?  
And who exactly was Charlie with? She never got the chance to ask him because he had hung up too soon. She could only hope that it wasn't Willy.

The door to the McDonalds opened and she quickly moved around the corner, her back against the wall as she listened in. "She's not in the bathroom, sargent. She must've caught on and bolted out the window." There was a rather loud curse and the sound of someone stopping their feet.

"Find her! We've gotten too close to lose her now."

"Yes, sir." Rose closed her eyes and waited, hoping they would not run in her direction. They didn't, but the sargent stayed around for a few minutes,  
sending out orders over his radio.

Behind her there was the sound of a sort of engine that grew louder, and she knew that only a deaf person would miss that. She turned in time to see the elevator making its landing, and glanced over her shoulder in time to see the sargent rounding the corner to see what the noise was coming from.

"Freeze!" he shouted and everything that followed seemed to happen in slow motion. The doors to the elevator opened and she made a run for it, charging at Charlie and Wonka Sr. The cop pulled out his gun and opened fire at her and she stopped dead in her tracks. If she took one more step he'd shoot again and possibly hit her, or the two people in the elevator.

Charlie was screaming for her to run, but she didn't move. It wasn't worth it,  
and there was nothing for it. She got down on her knees and placed her hands behind her head, waiting for the cops to come and cuff her. Charlie was still shouting, and even Wonka Sr. was calling for her. All she could think about was how much she didn't want to hurt anyone anymore, so she stayed put. A nightstick struck her hard in the back of the head and she fell over, scraping her forehead on the pavement. Charlie gave a shout, and she looked up and screamed at them to go.

Wonka Sr. leapt into action and pressed the button on the elevator, and they were gone before anyone could stop them. Rose smiled faintly, and let herself get handcuffed. She wasn't going to run anymore.  
----

Willy watched the news flash on the TV, and threw the remote at the screen.  
"NO!" he shouted angrily. "NO! ROSE!"

The nurses came running in, along with Mrs. Bucket, all of them demanding that he calm down. He didn't so they gave him an injection. The sight was too horrible for Mrs. Bucket, so she turned away and watched the news report.  
Rose was being escorted into the cop cars, a nasty gash on her forehead, and in the background the elevator hovered around for a minute and then disappeared.

The struggling stopped behind her, and she turned around to see Willy unconcious on the bed, and the other nurses putting away equipment and repositioning him on the bed. "What happened?" asked the nurses. Mrs.  
Bucket looked up at the screen and quickly changed the channel to another news station. The headline on it was a forestfire happening somewhere in the US.

"He was devistated," said Mrs. Bucket. "He loves that forest. His dad used to take him there when he was little." She was a horrible liar, but she hoped that just this once she was believable.

"All that over a forest?" asked a nurse with a chuckle. "And I thought I'd seen some nut jobs in my time." They all finished up and left, and Mrs. Bucket sighed with relief. The secret was still safe for now. 


	20. A Possible Solution

(A/N: To the one and only person who seems to know what play I'm talking about, yay! Suessical forever! Us whos gotta stick together! WE ARE HERE! WE ARE HERE! WE ARE HERE! WE ARE- YOOOOOOOP! I have a funny Suessical story for you, but I'll tell you later. On with the fic!) 

The trial was set to take place in about a month, and Rose remained isolated from everyone. Willy wanted so badly to see her but his hospitalized state prevented it. So instead he lay there in bed, barely speaking to anyone, and eventually rejecting food as well (not that the food tasted that great to begin with).

Charlie quickly became afraid for him and found it ironic that the one time Rose was trying so badly not to do anything that would put him in danger,  
she was probably killing him! The nurses, dimissed it as temporary depression and that once he was up and moving he'd be fine. But Willy's condition continued to deteriorate, and his body seemed to give up the minute he'd lost hope for Rose. A few weeks later, the family got the devasting news that the infection was continuing to spread.

"We're doing the best we can, but we just can't stop it," explained the nurse to Mr. and Mrs. Bucket, Charlie listening from around the corner. "The anti-  
biotics we gave him aren't working, and if they don't start to work soon"  
her voice drifted as if she expected them to know where she was going with that sentence.

"He'll die?" asked Mrs. Bucket.

"The infection's almost covered his arm," explained the nurse. "After that it will continue throughout his body and will eventually reach vital organs such as his heart. The only way to prevent this from happening, if anti-biotics won't work, is if we cut off the source of the infection." There was a pause as they all took it in. "I'm afraid we may have to amputate his arm. I'm sorry."

Charlie bit his lip and glanced up at the door to Willy's room and shook his head. What could anyone do now? What could he do when things looked so hopeless. He knew that if he were in Willy's position right now, he'd be giving up entirely too. All he could do was pray that things wouldn't end this way.  
----

Willy lay in bed, staring out the window. His entire body was so exhausted but his mind was running a million miles an hour, keep him awake in an almost frenzied state. He couldn't cry, he couldn't talk, he just lay there.  
However, what the family and nurses had mistaken for a fit of depression turned out to be his own attempt to review everything in his head of Rose's story, trying desperately to find a loophole. Anything that could save her from the death penalty she was sure to get. Something was there, some detail he was missing and he knew it, but what.

The very itching thought of this was what made him lose his appetite, kept him away the last twenty-four hours, and consumed his mind so much that he was hardly aware of anyone around him. There must be something.  
anything!

Charlie stepped in, closing the door behind him and sat on the bed. "Willy"  
he said softly, there was no response. "Willy, I... I wish I could help her too, I really do... but it's over." Willy still didn't talk. His mind was only in one place now. Something... anything...

"She murdered someone, Willy. There's nothing we can do to change that"  
Change? Fuses in him mind began to spark an sizzle. Change? Change...

"I'm sure she's different now, but she still has to pay for the bad stuff she did..."

Stuff she did on purpose... on purpose meaning she wanted to do it... she was intending to do it... Change? Change what? Motive? Method? Evidence?  
Change... Intentionally... Murder...

Wait... murder?

Now, the most familiar symbol of an idea that most people can relate to is the little light turning on. However, this problem had been growing in Willy's mind for a long time as was the solution. So, rather than a lightbulb an entire spotlight along with fireworks, a few disco balls, and strobe lights all went off, and he was certain the blinding illumination was shooting out his ears.  
Eureka!

"That's it!" he shouted, sitting up so fast he went dizzy. "That's it! I've got it!  
I've got it!" Charlie, he thought. He needed Charlie. "Charlie, my boy! Oh,  
there you are," he said suddenly, realizing the startled boy was right there,  
staring at him rather nervously. "Charlie, I think I've found it at last!"

"Found what, sir?" he asked, standing up.

"The loophole! The key to saving her life! I've got it!" Charlie waited anxiously to hear what it was, but Willy placed a hand on his stomach and looked around. "Could you be a good lad and get the nurse to bring me some food? I'm starving"  
----

Willy's appetite had returned in full force, and he nearly devoured the silverware he was given. Whatever had gotten a hold of his appetite before was gone now. "All right," he said after a few minutes of binging. "Charlie,  
can you remember the main crime Rose was convicted of and could be sentenced to death for?"

"She murdered someone?" he offered.

"Precisely. Only she didn't!"

"What do you mean she didn't?" demanded Charlie. "Are you saying she has an evil twin?"

"Don't be ridiculous! Although, that might be a slightly easier one to convince the judges of. You see, murder implies that she meant to do it, and I know she didn't."

"You're saying it was an accident?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes! The entire thing was completely unintentional! You see, that night as she was trying to escape, and when the man ran out in front of her suddenly she slammed on the brakes in an attempt not to hit him. If there were any security cameras working at that time we may be able to prove that!"

"You're crazy!"

"I'm quite certain they shall say so, but that doesn't matter now. Come on"  
He pulled himself up to get out of the bed and slowly got to his feet.

"Are you serious!" cried Charlie. "You can't leave like this!"

"Watch me," he said and headed strait for the window. Charlie sighed and rolled his eyes. Here we go again, he thought to himself.

(A/N: Okay, so the funny story. At the end scene when the wickersham bros are about to boil the dust speck and Jojo is supposed to shout out, "YOOOP" Well, one saturday rehersal we got to that part, and here's what happened. Cat comes up and delivers his line, "Now just for a minute, young Jojo looked grim. The fate of the whos rested squarely on him! But then came a came a think; a peculiar new word. The kind of a word no one ever had heard." Then we all start shouting we are here again and Jojo raises up his hands, opens up his mouth, and forgets his line. So instead of yop, he shouts out,  
"CRAAAAAP!" It was hillarious.)


	21. Running Blind

The elevator was waiting for them right outside and before Charlie could stop either Willy or himself, they were on it and headed back to the factory. His heart was racing in his chest as he tried to piece together what exactly was going on. Part of him was afraid he was in trouble, the other part was excited beyond belief. "Charlie..." said Willy after a moment, and Charlie looked up at him. The man looked a little more pale than normal, and Charlie became afraid that he was still sick.

"What?" he asked at length. Willy gave him a nervous look.

"When your mother and your father met... when did they know they were.  
you know..."

"In love?" asked Charlie, becoming even more confused. Willy nodded.

"Yeah, I guess that's it."

"I... dunno..." stuttered Charlie. "My mom said she just knew. Why? What's this got to do with-" He stopped suddenly and stared at Willy wide-eyed.  
"You think you're in love with her, don't you!" Willy wouldn't even look at him.

"I never said-" he tried to say, stumbling over his words something terrible.

"Willy, look at you!" cried Charlie. "You're in a hospital gown! Your arm is all bandaged up from a bullet wound! A BULLET WOUND! You just broke out of a hospital and now we're headed to... I don't even know where we're headed to! All to save her?" Charlie stared at him expectantly, and Willy gave a small shrug. "You love her!"

"So maybe I do!" the chocolatier shouted back, making Charlie jump and accidentally hit one of the buttons. The elevator gave a large jerk, tugging to the side and making them tumble over. Willy growled and reached up, hitting one of the buttons to make it stop, and the elevator continued on its original course. "So maybe I do," he said in a much more controlled tone. "Perhaps I do l-love her. And perhaps I am willing to do all this... crazy stuff to save her... and I don't care! I don't care in the slightest! All I do care about is that at this moment she's sitting in a jail somewhere, waiting to be sentenced,  
possibly to death. And I won't have it!" He stopped to take a breath, and looked at Charlie with a dark look unlike one the boy had ever seen before.  
"There are a lot of things I can do, my boy, but staying up some awful night,  
waiting for midnight to come and for her to be executed... I can't do that!" A tear rolled down his cheek and he looked away. "I can't and I won't."

Charlie had never seen this side to Willy before, and it had completely caught him off guard. The candy man looked as if his very innards had been ripped out in front of him and he was now standing completely undone and exposed.  
He looked broken. Charlie placed a hand on his shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze. "We'll save her," he said in a firm tone, and Willy patted his hand,  
offering him a sad smile. Charlie secretley wondered if Willy even thought that what they were trying to do was even possible.  
----

Rose lay on the stone floor of the holding cell, head turned away from the bars so she didn't have to look at them and be reminded of where she was.  
Tears fell down her face, and she brushed them away continuously in a hopeless effort to keep her face dry. She thought of Willy and wondered how he was fairing at the hospital. She could only pray that his arm was healing safely. Her mind wandered to the boy, and the look on his face when she had given up in front of him. How strange it was that her arrest there was so similar to her arrest several years ago, outside of her father's house...

She squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to remember that day... the day when everything had gone wrong. Behind her, the guard was watching the news,  
and a name was anounced on the channel that made her turn her head to look at the small portion of the screen that was visible. "Willy Wonka, the infamous chocolatier, was discovered missing only minutes ago by one of the nurses in the hospital."

Rose jumped to her feet and stared at the screen in horror. "A young boy disappeared with him, and it is being assumed that he was taken as a hostage.  
Anyone who has any information on the strange disappearance is asked to contact your local authorities..."

"Sonofa-" Rose shouted and spun around, kicking the wall violently. "The idiot!" The guard shouted at her to be quiet and she wandered over to the wall and sank down to the floor, plopping onto the ground none too gently. 'He'll get himself killed!' she thought to herself. Him and that kid.

She sighed and shook her head, burrying her face in her arms and letting out another deep breath. "Stupid stupid stupid!" she growled, and listened to the remainder of the news report.  
----

"Come on! Come on!" growled Charlie as he waited on the computer. Behind him, Willy Wonka was pulling on his usual attire, trying his best to avoid the bandaging around his arm as he worked. "You're one of the richest men in the world and you couldn't even spare a few bucks for a decent internet connection!" cried Charlie as he shook the mouse around impatiently.

"I kept forgetting..." mumbled Willy as he adjusted his top hat. He took a quick look at himself in the mirror and grinned in approval. Finally he looked sharp!

"Crap!" shouted Charlie, calling Willy's attention back to the boy who was typing in another search angrily. "Stupid reports tell nothing!"

"Well... keep looking," said Willy, taking a step back. It became apparent very quickly that the boy suffered from severe internet road rage. After a few more long minutes of waiting another site popped up and Charlie skimmed through the headline.

"Nothing!" he shouted and shook his head. "Come on, you idiots! I just want the name of a stupid gas station!" He went to yet another search, and turned around to see Willy had backed away to the wall. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked.

"Being scared," said Willy, and then pointed to the computer. "What's it doing?"

Charlie looked again and sighed. "Great! Now you've got a virus!" The computer screen flickered a few times and the entire system died. "And there goes your computer. Congratulations!" He turned and looked at Willy who shrugged.

"Now what"  
----

"This is so much faster," said Charlie with a smile. Wonka Sr. stood behind him as he watched Charlie work the office computer. Willy stood a few feet away, letting them do their thing.

"I got Broadband a long time ago," said Wilbur. "Works so much better."

"No kidding," said Charlie, shooting Willy a venemous look. "Thanks again for letting us do this. We must look crazy to you." Wilbur also shot a glance at Willy, who glanced back resentfully.

"I've seen worse, young man," Wilbur said, turning back to Charlie.

"Ah-ha!" shouted Charlie, raising his hands in triumph. "Texaco station,  
Grove City Pennsylvannia, USA! Let's go!" He jumped up and grabbed his jacket.

"The United States?" cried Wilbur. "And how are you going to get there? On foot?"

"Of course not!" said Willy as he and Charlie hurried out the door. "We're taking the elevator." They left without another word and Wilbur sighed and shook his head.

"Elevators go damn near anywhere these days," he muttered.  
---- 


	22. Bob and Chuck

Flying to the US, granted they were doing it in style, proved to be more of a long and dull trip than originally anticipated. Charlie soon found himself laying with his back on the bottom of the elevator and his feet kicked up against the glass wall and resting on the one area that wasn't covered in buttons. His hands was tucked behind his head, and he was fighting off the urge to fall asleep. 

Willy stood a few feet away, back against the wall and his eyes watching the ocean as they passed over it. Every thought in his crazy brain was bent on Rose and how he could possibly save her. Truth be told, he wasn't sure how much this trip was going to accomplish, but something told him that there was a piece still missing to the puzzle and the only place he'd find it was at that gas station.

"...radio, you know?"

Willy snapped out of thought and looked at Charlie, slightly puzzled.  
"What?" he asked.

"I said you really need a radio in here. Helps kill time." Charlie's tone gave away that he was absolutely bored, and Willy could hardly blame him.

"Perhaps I'll see to that when we get back," he said, looking in the spot where he might consider putting one.

"And we could make our own radio station," Charlie added, smiling as if slightly amused with the thought. "Strictly oldies rock, of course," he said,  
looking over at Willy.

"Oh definitely," agreed Willy. "And perhaps some more modern rock"  
Charlie looked at the chocolatier, knowing that the chances of the man ever listening to bands like Korn, Disturbed, Cradle of Filth, or even Mud Vayne were slim to nothing.

"Maybe," said Charlie, and looked back out the glass. "But never hip-hop."

"Of course not! Don't be absurd! But would we be the DJ's?"

"Maybe," said Charlie. "Or, we could make a robot DJ... and we could call it Bob."

"Bob?"

"Yeah. Bob."

"But I like Chuck."

"Chuck?"

"It's a good robot name."

"It's not even that good of a person name! Chuck! No, Bob."

"And Bob is a robot's name?"

"More of a robot's name than Chuck. All the kids will pick on him if we named him Chuck. They'll throw rocks at him and say, 'Chuck you're a loser... cuz your name's Chuck!'"

"They will not!"

"Will too!"

"Will not not not!"

"Will too too too- We're here!"

"Oh yeah? Well you can... oh!" Willy turned from Charlie and looked out the glass. They were in fact coming in for a landing, and from the looks of it, it was going to be through the roof of the gas station.

"Willy, not through the roof!" shouted Charlie as he jumped to his feet.

"Oh, they won't mind," he said as they came closer. Charlie quickly pushed a button, and the elevator stopped in midair and hovered about a foot from the roof. Then he pressed a series of buttons and the elevator moved over to the right until they had passed over the building and then lowered it into the parking lot. "You never let me have any fun," complained Willy, and Charlie rolled his eyes.

"Somehow I doubt they'll want to help us very much if we leave a hole in their roof, Chuck."

"Don't call me Chuck!" Willy snapped, and the doors opened. They stepped out and walked over to the gas station entrance. When they stepped in, the aroma of beer and cigarettes was almost over bearing, but Charlie had almost expected it. He hadn't intended to find this place to be a five star gas station or anything.

"Stay here," said Willy. "I'll go talk to that man behind the counter." Charlie nodded, and turned around to look at the magazines, trying not to draw too much attention to himself. Beside him a truck driver was looking at the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue while drinking coffee from his mug, and a little further down the isle was a girl, probably in her early twenties, dressed up rather flimsy and chatting away on her cell phone. Charlie looked to the other side and saw a family, probably on vacation, trying to find the bathroom. No one in the station looked the least bit threatening, and yet he still felt paranoid, almost as if he was expecting the police to arrive and arrest them. Trying to keep that out of his mind, he walked toward the giant cooler and pulled out a bottle of whipped cream, pretending to be interested in it while attempting to listen in on Willy and the cashier.

He could hear Willy's voice as he chatted with the man behind the counter,  
and judging by their tones, it wasn't working too well. Charlie sighed,  
shaking his head. He wasn't expecting this to work at all. He looked over at Willy and saw the chocolatier was at the point of arguing with the man, his face starting to grow red with frustration. He had to do something.

Looking around, he spotted a stand of little shot glasses that said 'Grove City Pennsylvania' on them, and he glanced at the blonde woman, who was still on her cell phone. Reaching into his jeans he pulled out a fifty he had earned from a months worth of walking one of his best friend's dogs while they had been on vacation, and sighed. This had better work.

Walking up to the girl, he waited till she was done talking and turned on whatever charm he had. "Hey," he said with a grin. "Would you like to make fifty dollars?" The girl pocketed her phone, giving him her full attention.

Willy was about ready to shout at the man when there came a loud crash and the sound of shattered glass. They both looked over and heard the sounds of a woman crying, "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! I didn't see it there!" The cashier cursed under his breath and came out from behind the counter.

"Will you f------g watch where you're going, lady!" he shouted, causing the mother from the family to gasp and cover her little girl's ears.

"Hey!" shouted the father, as he stormed over angrily to confront the cashier,  
but in his hurry, bumped into the truck driver and made him spill his hot coffee all over hiself. The truck driver spun around to yell at the man, and at once a four way arguement broke out, taking all attention away from both Charlie and Willy. Smiling to himself, not really expecting things to work out quite this way, Charlie hurried over to Willy and climbed over the counter,  
the whipped cream still in his hands since he'd forgotten to put it back.

"Come on, quick!" Willy stared at him stunned, but obeyed, deciding to confront him later on it. They slipped into the back room, only to find themselves confronted with a mountain of security tapes. "Well this is just great!" growled Charlie.

"It happened almost twenty years ago... I think..." he muttered.

"You think!" cried Charlie. "You can't remember?"

"It was a long time ago!" Charlie cursed under his breath and turned to the tapes, trying to find ones that had dates close to that. Willy felt his mind start to go fuzzy, and soon he could hardly hear or see Charlie. "What season"  
asked Charlie.

Willy could feel his memory getting yanked into a flashback, and he barely was able to say, "In the fall," before he was fully into the flashback.  
----

"We'll be back around midnight, so don't wait up for us, dear," said the elderly woman while kissing Willy's cheek goodbye.

"Okay, grandma," he said, and shut the door behind them as they left. He went to go turn out the kithen lights when he heard the sounds of a breaking news story appearing on the screen. Curious, he turned to the living room and took a seat on the arm of the couch, watching the screen to see what had happened.

"Tragedy has struck this small town in Pennsylvania. Rose Parker, one of London's most wanted fugitives was at last spotted this night at this small gas station." Willy felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. Oh Rose,  
what have you done now? "Unfortunately the criminal got away, but not before running over and killing David Roberts, an elderly man who had apparently been giving Parker a place to live for the past few months. All we could find left of her was a gun she had taken with her, which turned out to be a water pistol painted black to scare the man no doubt."

His heart fell past his stomach and lodged itself into his intestines somewhere, falling to pieces on impact. He couldn't believe it, he just couldn't. He'd known Rose for a lot of things, but a murderer was not one of them. Behind him the phone was ringing, but he was too stunned to go and pick it up. Rose was a murderer. That's all he could think about. Rose was a murderer. A phone was ringing behind him. A man was dead. She killed him. She killed him and left him there to die.

A phone was ringing.

The answering machine clicked on, and he heard a very shaky voice on the other side. "H-hello? Willy? Will, are you there?" Willy turned off the TV,  
and turned around, staring at the machine. "Dammit, Will, please pick up"  
She was crying, he thought. She sniffled. "Will... I did something.  
something bad... I need you to come get me... please. Will... Will, pick up!  
Will, I know you're there... Please, help me!" He stood up, walking to the phone, but paused.

She'd killed someone. She was a murderer. A man was dead because of her.  
His hand reached for the phone, but then moved to the side and turned off the answering machine. "Will? Will... CLICK!" He waited until he was certain she had hung up then turned the machine on again, erasing the tape.  
----

Willy snapped out of it, and ran to the pile. "It was in September," he said suddenly, and looked around through them. "Here it is!" He pulled out a tape and shoved it in the player. Then he fast forwarded it until it was around the right time and hit play. Charlie was still clueless as to what was going on, but played along anyway, knowing it would all make sense soon... he hoped.

A car pulled up, and a man stepped out to get gas. Willy went to hit the fast forward, thinking this wasn't the one, but then a cop car pulled into the shot and he paused, watching it. The police stepped out, drawing their guns, and suddenly the man leaned into the window, telling the passenger something.  
"He's probably telling her right there that he tricked her," muttered Willy.

The man suddenly raised his hands in the air and backed away from the car.  
"What's he doing there?" asked Charlie.

"Rose drew a water gun she'd painted black to scare him away," said Willy.  
"The cops found it at the scene."

"Clever," muttered Charlie. "And it worked." Them man backed away from the car and out of the shot. There was a brief moment where it seemed nothing was happening, then suddenly the man ran out in front of the car to stop her and she ran him over. The car screached to a sudden halt, probably so she could see what she had just done, and then it took off, the cops to busy with the dead man to chase her.

"This won't work, Willy," sighed Charlie. "It's not enough proof that it was an accident."

"Rewind it," he muttered.

"What!"

"Rewind it, I want to see that again." Charlie sighed and reached over to rewind it.

"Okay... stop!" Charlie hit play and they watched again. The man ran out from the shadows and Rose hit him. "Rewind it again." Charlie obeyed,  
wondering if Willy's curiosity was turning into some morbid obsession. "Play it," he said, and Charlie hit play. "There! Pause it!" Charlie obeyed and noticed it was just as the man was running into veiw... but when he got a good look, it looked like the man was about to fall flat on his face.

"What's he doing?" asked Charlie. "He looks like he tripped."

"Rewind it," said Willy, and Charlie obeyed, this time watching closer as they played it. Sure enough, the man stumbled into view, rather than running into it, and it looked like he had tripped over something... or...

"He was shoved," said Willy. "There must me something on that other side.  
Come with me. We'll need to see if we can find the rest of that picture." They stood up to leave when there came an angry shout.

"Hey!" Willy pocketed the tape and turned around to face the cashier. "I told you you couldn't go back here! I'm calling the police!"

"Oh crap!" growled Charlie. There was nowhere to run and they stood there, waiting as the man dialed, all the while standing in the doorway so they didn't try to escape. Charlie's mind was running a million miles an hour. How long would he ge grounded for this one? Willy seemed to be trying to think of something as he looked around, and suddenly he heard the man shift a foot over to the side, trying to kick something over. Charlie looked down and saw the bottle of whipped cream and got an idea, probably the same one Willy had.

"What's your name?" asked the man to Willy.

"Chuck," said Willy. "And this is Bob." And with that, he kicked the can in Charlie's direction in one swift motion, and Charlie stooped down, picking it up and tearing off the cap. Pointing it at the man, he fired it, and whipped cream shot out of it, covering the man's face. The man gave a shout as Willy knocked him out of the way, pressing the hangup button on the phone, and took off, Charlie closely behind. Once they got on to the elevator, he turned to Charlie and in a firm voice said, "I don't EVER want to see you pull something like that again! Understood!"

"Yes sir," said Charlie with a smile as the candy man winked at him, and the elevator lifted off and into the clouds.  
----


	23. The Verdict

Rose sat there, staring at the screen with about the same baffled expression as the rest of the people in the room. "He attacked the man... with whipped cream?" she muttered. "What the hell is he doing?" But as she thought of it,  
she smiled a little... then the smile spread... and finally she laughed. She couldn't help it, but she laughed out loud, even after one of the cops told her to shut up. She sat back laughing and shaking her head. "Oh, Will," she chuckled. "I love you." She burried her face in her hands and laughed for another good ten minutes before she finally gained controll of herself again.  
----

The oompa-loompa fought with the machin viggorously as Willy and Charlie watched, a good five feet away for safety. Willy felt like he was watching Charlie fight with the computer again, and now Charlie got a taste of how Willy must have felt then. At one point the confectioner attempted to step up and help, but the oompa nearly attacked him, shouting at him in a squeaky voice to back off.

"I always thought those guys were happy singing people," said Charlie when Willy returned to him, lucky to still have all his finger in tact.

"Yeah, well that's the problem. Most people don't know that some of the little guys have raging tempers like a volcano. They're just waiting to erupt." The oompa jumped up and down shouting a chain of squeaky obscenities until at last the machine began to work. At once, he turn completely cheerful as though the whole thing had never happened. Charlie and Willy stepped up to the screen and got a good look.

"So there's the rest of the picture," said Willy, pointing to the area. "Bring the tape forward a few minutes," he asked kindly. The oompa obeyed, and Willy stopped him when they got to the spot. "This is it." They watched curiously.  
then gasped as a wave of shock hit them all.

"No way!" shouted Charlie. "Are you kidding me!"

"Play that again!" cried Willy, and they did. Again and again and again.  
until they had seen it over fifty times.

"I can't believe this!" shouted Charlie. "This is insane!"

"Grab your coat. We gotta report this now"  
----

Rose was laying on her back, her feet kicked up on top of the bench and her eyes closed as she attempted to fall asleep when the guard came up and began to open her cell. She opened her eyes and peered at him, her entire vision upside down, and the guard looked down at her.

"You're to meet with the judge now," he said, and she stood up.

"Why?"

"A new piece of evidence has arrived that could change your sentencing."

"Oh great," she muttered. Just what she needed. Another felony to add to the list. She followed him to the meeting room and was seated across from an overwieght man wearing glasses thick enough to be bullet proof. He looked her up and down, and she became slightly aware of the aroma she had with her from not being able to shower in the last week or so.

"All right," he said to the guard. "Send them in."

The guard opened the door and in walked Willy Wonka and Charlie Bucket,  
both of them looking as if they'd done something brilliant. "What are you two-" she started to say but the judge interrupted her.

"Do not speak to them," he said, his tone indicating that he was extremely bored and probably wanted to be out golfing rather than here. Who didn't?  
"Rose Parker, you've been brought here because a new and vital piece of evidence has been brought in that could clear you of murder charges." She immediatly looked at them wide-eyed and her jaw dropped.

"What did you do?" she asked.

"Do not speak to them!" snapped the judge, and she looked back at him,  
annoyed with him to the core. The man looked over at Willy and said, "If you would please."

Willy pulled out the caset tape from inside his oversized jacket pocket and pushed it into the VCR. He played it for them, and they watched as the car pulled up and the man stepped out of the car. The cops pulled into view, the man stepped away from the car as if threatened, then was run over as he apparently ran out in front of her to stop her.

"Now," said Willy. "This is the tape that everyone has seen and has used as evidence against my client."

"Mr. Wonka, you are not Miss Parker's attourney," said the judge.

"Er... right," he said, blushing a little and returned to the screen. "However.  
if you were to watch a little closer, this man doesn't run out in front of the car, but stumbles. Probably tripping over his own shoelaces, right?"

"Mr. Wonka-"

"Wrong!" cut in Willy. He pulled out a folder from his other jacket pocket and whipped out two enlarged photographs. "These are clips from the footage when you enlarge the shot and see what was cut out on the sides." The judge looked at them lazily at first... but then stopped, taking a closer look.

"By jove!" he gasped and Willy nodded.

"Yes," he said with a nod, and narrowed his eyes as he paced around the room with a mischievous smile. "It's proven with these photographs that my client not only didn't kill this man intentionally, but that he was murdered"  
Rose, who still had yet to see the photos, stared at Willy confused.

"You mean...?" Rose started, but stopped because she had no idea what he meant.

"Yes... I do. The man killed was pushed out in front of the car!" Rose's jaw dropped and Willy turned to the judge. "He was pushed out, your honor, by that man!" he shouted, turning and pointing to the guard dramatically. The guard immediatly looked at him with wide eyes and cried, "What!"

"Mr. Wonka, Mr. Johnson has just started working for us," said the judge lazily. "He's only twenty-three and would have been three when this happened."

"Of course he was!" said Willy, spinning around to the judge. "My point is..."

"You've made your point," said the judge. "We'll get some experts on this right away and find out who the policeman is. Miss Parker, it appears you're not a murderer after all.

Rose screamed in happiness and jumped up, throwing her arms up in the air,  
handcuffed wrists spreading as far as they could. "Yes!" she cried. "Yes!"

"Well wait," said Charlie. "What's going to happen to her now?" The judge turned to Willy and looked at him questioningly.

"I think..." he said at last. "That we can come up with an agreement"  
----

Rose stood in her court suit, eyes staring at the floor as Willy and the Bucket family sat in the audience, waiting nervously to see what would happen. Rose occasionally looked over to catch a brief glimpse of Willy, who's eyes did not leave her, almost as though he were trying to encourage her.

"Rose Parker," said the judge and she snapped her head over to look at him.  
"After reviewing all the evidence and going through the details for some time, you are hereby found guilty of several robberies over the last twenty years, and guilty of a hit and run. After reviewing the evidence that the hit and run was not an intended murder, your sentenced has been cut down to twenty-five years in jail." Rose lowered her head as she was lead away, not looking up, save for once, to offer her best friend, and the only friend she had a smile. Willy felt tears come to his eyes as she was taken away, but her smile had a sense of serenity to it, and something inside told him she would be all right.

A week later he paid his first visit to her in prison, and found she was still smiling when he greated her. They were seated in a smaller room on opposite sides of a table where a guard stood by the doors and kept an eye on her.  
"How are you holding up?" he asked softly.

"It's hard," she answered, and he gently took hold of one of her hands,  
stroking the back of it with his thumb. "But I'm surviving." She shrugged. "It could be worse. I could still be on the streets."

"You honestly think this is better?" he asked, seeming a bit perplexed by the very idea.

"I do, because I finally have the sense that it's over. It's done. If I can just stick out these twenty-five years, I'll finally be free." He hadn't known her to look on the brighter side of things, but it was a little better.

"This isn't fair," he said softly, squeezing her hand. "They shouldn't have sentenced you like this."

"Will, I'm not in a position to say what's fair or not now." She lowered her head and turned her eyes away from him. "I did a lot of bad things, Will, a lot of which you don't even know about... A lot the police don't even know about..." She blinked and a tear fell down her face. "And the truth is, you're too forgiving." She looked up at him and brushed the tear away. "I've done nothing since we met, to earn your friendship. I've never been a good friend to you, and whenever I made a decision, it was never with you in mind, until the time I made up that story to keep you from being arrested." Tears fell down Willy's face, but he quickly brushed them away. "That was when I realized something. I love you, Will. You're like my brother, maybe even more. That's when I decided that I gotta change. I can't keep living like this and hurting people like you and my mom." She paused, her voice breaking and she waited until she knew she could talk. "And even though this is hard,  
and it may not seem fair... if it's gonna offer me the chance to get better, then I'm taking it."

He reached out, stroking her cheek and sighed, tears still falling down his face. "Time's up," called the guard. They both stood up and he kissed her cheek briefly.

"Take care of yourself," he whispered in her ear, and left, hearing the sounds of heavy metal bar doors close behind him.  
----

A month went by, and Willy had visited her whenever he was allowed, and the change he had seen in Rose had lasted over the weeks. By the third month it became apparent that it was permanent, and it was then that he decided to plead with the judge.

Four months later, when Rose was told she was set to be taken to court yet again, her first thought was that they had discovered one of the many offenses she had commited and hadn't been caught for yet. The entire time as she dressed and prepared for court, she tried to think of how much longer her sentence could possibly grow. She hadn't commited any crimes as big as murder, but there still were a number of large heists they still didn't know about, or at least didn't know was her.

A few hours later she found herself standing in a court room, waiting for the judge to announce what this is all about, and was slightly surprised to see Willy Wonka arrive on the Plantiff's side. "Miss Parker, please rise," said the judge. She stood, and glanced at Willy once, trying to read his expression. "It has been brought to my attention recently that in cases like yours, an alternative sentencing is house arrest for the same amount of time. But under the obvious circumstances, that would be quite impossible for you, seeing that you have no house to speak of. But, in view of the fact that after four months of prison you have not had any bad reports from any of the guards an alternative place has been offered to serve as your home for house arrest." At this point the judge gestured to Willy, who looked at her, unsure of what she'd do. "Willy Wonka has agreed to allow you to serve your sentence in his factory, granted to accept his offer." Rose's eyes brightened and she mouthed out a happily astonished, "What?" to him.

"Miss Parker, do you accept?" Smiling as tears fell down her face by the gallon, she nodded and the judge banged the hammer down, making the decision final. Once she was able to, she ran into Willy's arms, sobbing out of control as he held her close. He stroked her hair, and walked out with his arm around her.

"So, what happens now?" she asked on the ride home in the elevator. It was just her and him, and they both admired the beautiful city below them as they drew closer to the factory.

"Now, we start over, fresh." She looked at him with a smiled and took a step closer.

"I love you," she said softly.

"Well of course you do," he said with a grin. "We're friends. We should love each other-"

"Will," she interrupted, and stepped closer, taking his face between her hands and kissing him on the lips. He froze as if unsure of what to do, but when she stepped back he had a pretty good idea.

"Oh," he said, slightly breathless. She turned red, completely embarassed and turned away.

"I'm sorry-" she started to say, but in one swift movement, he grabbed her by the shoulder, spun her around and kissed her. His arms wrapped around her and she melted, holding him close as tears fell down her face. At last, her nightmare was over, and they could both live the way they had wanted to so long ago. Everything bad was over, and all that could happen now was good.  
And at last she knew she was safe to love him, knowing she wasn't at risk of hurting or betraying him. Not now, not ever again.

She loved him.

"You wait wanting this world to let you in/ And you stand there/ Frozen like the dark and empty streets/ And you smile/ Hiding behind a God given face/  
And I know you so much more/ Everything made it more/ Was all I needed to see/ And you're the only one I ever believed in/ The answer that could never be found/ The moment you decided to let love in/ And now I'm banging on the door of an angel/ The empty fear is where we begin/ The moment we decided to let love in"  
-'Let Love In,' Googoo Dolls

THE END!

(A/N: I finished it! I can't believe I finished it! I didn't think I would, but I did! Hehe... Wow!) 


End file.
